The Mask of Ice
by Tsuki-no-Kurokage
Summary: After saving his inner hollow's life, Hitsugaya Toushirou didn't know what to think. With a suspicious Yamamoto and a possessive Aizen hot on his trail, how will he be able to survive? The upcoming winter war...is here at last. Undergoing major revamp.
1. 一　いち

The Mask of Ice

Author's Note: Yeah… So, this is my first Bleach fanfic. Please read and review! I hope everyone will like it! (I know, cliché stuff to say, and you all probably think I'm being lame, but I seriously don't know what to say!)

Warnings – This is a HitsuHina, IchiRuki and MatsuGin fanfic. Oh yeah, and a little HitsuOC too. If you don't like the pairings, then I suggest that you don't read this, unless you don't mind. And I have to add this: Chad, Orihime and Ishida won't appear much in this fanfic. They will appear, yes, but not many times. Sorry!

This takes place after Hitsugaya's team returns to Seireitei. However, in this fic, let's just take it that the Hueco Mondo arc never happened, because this story idea would totally clash with the Hueco Mondo arc. _Gomenasai…_

And I might act like a little 'manga-ish' here and there, screaming 'ああああああ！' for no apparent reason, and the chapter titles are a little like the anime/manga episode/chapter titles, so I hope you won't mind. This fanfic is more of the Japanese side, so if you watch the English dub, please don't read this, because I won't attempt to translate the Japanese terms for you.

See, the thing is, I don't do dub stuff, period.

Disclaimer: Bleach belongs to Kubo Tite. I own nothing concerning Bleach except for my OCs who will appear later.

_I__talics – thinking/Japanese words/flashback/dream_

_**Bold italics **__**– emphasizing**_

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Chapter 1 – Hitsugaya's Capture! Hougyoku's First Victim

Everything was dark. The only bit of light in the darkness was coming from the diamond-like Hougyoku. Aizen settled down in his chair, watching Hougyoku shine brightly like the diamond it resembled so. The sadist smiled, and Ichimaru was smiling as well. Aizen picked up Hougyoku, and looked at it intently. As Hougyoku shone more brightly, Aizen smiled even more. "Hougyoku's reacting to my reiatsu, it seems," Aizen murmured, satisfied.

"Ya mean yer _**high **_reiatsu, Aizen-sama," Ichimaru corrected.

"Do you have something to ask of me, Gin?" Aizen asked, knowing Ichimaru all too well.

"Ara, ara. So ya _**are **_that perceptive, Aizen-sama. Yep. There's a' somethin' I want to ask of ya."

Aizen put Hougyoku down. "I know your character by now, Gin. Anyway, what do you wish to ask of me?"

Ichimaru leaned against the wall casually and rubbed his head. "Well, I've heard. From Ulquiorra, that is."

"Heard what, Gin? What did Ulquiorra tell you?"

"He told me that ya want someone to go to Seireitei and fetch a certain _**someone **_here."

"And what does this have anything to do with you wanting something from me, Gin?" Aizen asked, a little taken aback that Ulquiorra told Ichimaru _**that**_.

"Well, ya see, there's someone…" Ichimaru trailed off, and his smile disappeared. A serious face followed. "…I have ta' talk to, in Seireitei…"

Aizen smiled. "I see. Very well, Gin. I grant you permission."

"Thanks a bunch, Aizen-sama."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"MA.TSU.MO.TO!!!!! Get your _**lazy BUTT **_in here NOW!!!"

Hitsugaya's ever so pissed voice echoed throughout the entire Seireitei – no, scratch that. The whole of Soul Society – and he would be even more pissed if his sake-loving fukutaichou wouldn't return to do her fair share of the stack of paperwork, and it was highly likely that she wouldn't even think of going back to the 10th Division. Oh no – no fukutaichou would be so stupid so as to return to his/her own division, knowing that their taichou would be pulling a _**really **_pissed look. Well, except for Yachiru, that is, but she was an exception. (And she wasn't stupid.)

"Matsumoto!!!" Hitsugaya shouted from his division. "Don't make me chase after you!"

Somewhere in a distant corner of Seireitei, the orange-haired buxom fukutaichou of the 10th Division was enjoying a nice drink of sake with Kira and Hisagi. Hinamori was with them as well, but she didn't want any sake. "N-ne, Rangiku-san…" Hinamori began. "Hitsugaya-kun sounds really mad…"

"Matsumoto!!!" Hinamori cringed a little at Hitsugaya's sudden outburst. "If you don't show yourself now, I will personally give you six stacks of the paperwork!!!"

"Taichou'll be fine. He'll cool down after some time. Don't worry too much, Hinamori-chan," assured Matsumoto.

"_D-demo_…" Hinamori looked towards the direction of the 10th Division office. "Hitsugaya-kun… is _**really really **_mad this time…"

"I told you, taichou'll cool down."

"_Demo…_"

"No 'buts'. Why don't you relax a little and enjoy a nice, warm drink of sake?" Matsumoto offered, handing Hinamori a cup filled with sake. Hinamori kindly rejected it with a smile and a soft 'I don't want to get drunk' statement. "Aw, c'mon! It's not like as if you'll go all hormone crazy over taichou, right?"

"H-HUH?!" Hinamori gasped, blushing.

Kira cut in, "Ano, Rangiku-san, I don't think Hinamori-kun should take any sake at all, otherwise she might really…"

"It'll be fine! Come on, Hinamori! Drink up!"

Hinamori was hesitant, but she greatly accepted the sake, and gulped it down. She felt much more relaxed, and much more comfortable. "Mmm…!" she mumbled. "May I have another cup?"

"Sure! Why not?" Matsumoto poured another cup of sake, with Hitsugaya's shouts echoing throughout Seireitei once more.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The foxy ex-taichou of the 3rd Division smiled, feeling the familiar reiatsus belonging to various seated officers and fukutaichous still staying in Seireitei. He knew that the taichous, especially the more elite ones, were skilled in hiding their reiatsus, but he would have to worry about that later. He was on an important mission; to find a particular someone and talk to her.

But he also have another mission, and it was a complicated one, so it seemed, for Aizen really needed a particular someone from Seireitei to be a perfect guinea pig for Hougyoku's testing. Apparently, Aizen discovered that Hougyoku had an astounding ability and – being the sadistic Aizen he was – couldn't wait to test it out on someone in particular.

"Sigh… Ain't easy bein' one of Aizen-sama's right-hand men… though Tousen seems to have it easy…" Ichimaru sighed, the smile still on his face.

Meanwhile, back at Hueco Mondo, a certain blind right-hand man of Aizen's was left in his room with endless stacks of paperwork. (A/N: I am horrendously evil to Tousen. XD)

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"More sake! More sake! Hic!" Hinamori hiccupped, obviously having drunk too much sake. Matsumoto drunkenly poured Hinamori another cup of sake, and fell on her back, hiccupping. "Wah! There can never be too much sake for me! Hic!" Matsumoto hiccupped, patting her bottle of sake. "As long as taichou - hic – doesn't find out about this – hic – we'll allll-!"

"You'll all be what, Matsumoto?" a grumpy, irritated, familiar voice spoke from behind her.

"Eh? That voice – hic – sounds like…" Matsumoto trailed off, and paled as soon as her mind finally managed to register whose voice it belonged to. She spun around and came face-to-face with her white-haired prodigal captain. "T-taichou…!! H-how c-coincidental! What are you doing here, taichou?"

"I should be the one asking _**you **_that, Matsumoto," Hitsugaya replied grumpily. "Have you even the faintest idea that I've been waiting in my office from morning till now _**just **_for you to report for work? And now what do I get?! You drinking with not one, not two, but _**three **_fukutaichous, _**including **_Hina-!"

A drunk Hinamori cut in, "Shirou-chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!!" She drunkenly ran up to Hitsugaya and gave him a nice, warm, big, death hug, holding him like as if he were her life. Hitsugaya shifted uncomfortably in her grasp, but she just wouldn't let go. Matsumoto laughed at the sight, and Kira and Hisagi were too drunk to even notice. "Neeeeee, Shirou-chaaaaann…!!! What are you doing here, ne? Don't you have any work to doooo?"

"Stop calling me Shirou-chan! And I'm here to take Matsumoto back to my division where she has to do the remaining paperwork, so could you just let go of me, Hinamori?" Hitsugaya requested. Boy, he sure was pissed that day…

"Mou! Shirou-chan! Don't be so mean! Rangiku-san just wants to introduce the pleasure of sake to meeee!! You should try it too, Shirou-chaan!! It makes you all warm and fuzzy inside!!"

'_I can __**never **__imagine the baka Bed-wetter Momo saying that…_' Hitsugaya thought horrifically. "No thank you, Hinamori! Now, I'd better get you back to your division before you go totally out of control." Hitsugaya simply stated, carrying Hinamori bridal style and shunpo-ing off, leaving the remaining drunk fukutaichous behind. Matsumoto shrugged and continued drinking her sake while Hisagi and Kira were lying on the ground, helpless. As soon as Hitsugaya reached the 5th Division fukutaichou room, he put down the sleeping Hinamori down on her bed, and got a wet towel ready.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Ichimaru Gin breathed, and took in the familiar spiritual scent of Seireitei. "Ahh, just comin' here alone is good 'nuff to make ya all feelin' refreshed! Just what I need before I accomplish my mission!" The silver-haired traitor shunpo-ed around Seireitei, and tried avoiding any contact with anyone else. He hid his reiatsu very well. No one noticed that he was lurking around in Seireitei.

Ichimaru stopped, and tracked down the familiar reiatsu belonging to a certain friend of his. He shunpo-ed off again, and arrived at the distant corner in Seireitei. He saw his orange-haired buxom friend gulping down sake, bottle by bottle. He noticed. Her hair was in a complete mess; some strands of her hair were spread in all kinds of weird directions, and the rest just seem very ruffled.

She didn't comb it.

Her eyes had patches of blue and black, and she appeared like some kind of zombified panda. Her grey eyes lost their usual shine, and even appeared a little bloodshot. Had she been crying? Her eyes even seem a little wrinkled here and there, and they seem to be narrowed to slits even though she didn't notice it.

She hadn't been sleeping well, or wasn't even sleeping at all.

Although everything else about her appeared fine, she wasn't fine at all. And yet, Ichimaru still smiled. He smiled because he could see his friend once more, and he knew that she was actually sacrificing so much because of him. "Yo, Rangiku."

Matsumoto Rangiku turned to face the silver-haired man, and her eyes widened. "G-Gin?!"

"Never woulda' thought to see ya in this kind o' state, eh, Rangiku?"

"Gin… W-What are you doing here?"

"I just came ta' say hi. Anythin' wrong with that?"

"Of course there's something wrong with that, Gin! You are a traitor of Soul Society! You're not allowed to even take a step in here! Go away before someone finds you and reports you to Yamamoto-sou-taichou!"

"Are ya _**that **_worried about me, Rangiku?" Ichimaru smiled his trademark smile. "Anyway, you've already found me, so why aren't ya reportin' me? Is it because ya are worried 'bout me?"

Matsumoto felt herself burning up. She held onto Haineko's hilt. "Ichimaru Gin, don't mess with me! I'm giving you this one last chance to flee before I slice you with Haineko!"

"Can ya bring yerself to do that, Rangiku?" Ichimaru asked, feeling rather hurt from Matsumoto's comment. "All I wanna do is drop by and say hi to ya, and this is the thanks I get?"

"G-Gin, I…"

"Nah, it's ok, Ran-Ran. I understand. After all, ya never knew the reason why I joined Aizen-sama and ya never gonna find out," Ichimaru was about to head off to his next destination in Seireitei when he muttered one last bit to Matsumoto, and that bit nearly gave Matsumoto a heart attack if she even had a heart. (A/N: I've been wondering… Do shinigami have real, pumping hearts like normal humans?) "Although I have ta' warn ya, Ran-Ran… Shouldn't ya be with yer chibi taichou now? After all, ya wouldn't want to find 'im missin' now, would ya?"

Matsumoto choked back a gasp. "Gin… You're not intending to…?"

"I am, Rangiku-chan. And if ya don't believe me, then just too bad. _Ja ne, _Ran-Ran. I know we'll meet again…" After Ichimaru disappeared mysteriously like he always did, Matsumoto left Kira and Hisagi behind and shunpo-ed back to the 10th Division office, hoping to find her taichou there doing the paperwork, but no, he wasn't there. She heard the alarm go off suddenly and dashed out of the office. When she passed by the 5th Division, all she saw was a bleeding and unconscious Hinamori, crying for her Shirou-chan not to go.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"What happened, Hinamori-fukutaichou?" Unohana gently asked as soon as Hinamori woke up in the 4th Division. Hinamori was covered with bandages and her hair was let down. She still looked a little bit weak, but should have enough strength to recall the events that took place earlier.

"U-Unohana-taichou…?"

"Hinamori-fukutaichou, thank goodness you're all right. Now, please tell me. What happened?"

"What happened…?" Hinamori gasped when she remembered what had happened. "I… I was sleeping… t-then, I heard Shirou-chan… I mean, Hitsugaya-kun talking to me about staying away from sake and such… I woke up, I think I was a little bit sober, and then Hitsugaya-kun and I got into a friendly conversation, like all the other times, when suddenly Ichimaru barged in… and… and…"

"And what? What did Gin do, Hinamori-chan?" Matsumoto asked, hoping that Ichimaru didn't do what she thought he did.

"He… He used Shinsou… I think… T-then, Hitsugaya-kun tried to protect me, and Ichimaru used bankai on Hitsugaya-kun… And then… Then he stabbed me too, and Hitsugaya-kun was talking to Ichimaru about something… I couldn't really hear properly… Then I felt some blood on my face all of the sudden, and Hitsugaya-kun's screams, and… and…" Hinamori broke down in tears. "Ichimaru took Hitsugaya-kun away…" Before anyone else knew it, Hinamori was crying so badly that Unohana noticed that one or two of her wounds were splitting with blood oozing out.

"Hinamori-fukutaichou, please, calm down! Don't get so agitated! It's not good for your wounds…!" Unohana consoled, trying to calm the crying Hinamori down. "I'll report this to Yamamoto-sou-taichou right now. A captains meeting should be held soon… We have to get Hitsugaya-taichou back as soon as we can, so don't worry, Hinamori-fukutaichou."

"_H-Hai_…"

"Matsumoto-fukutaichou, please stay with Hinamori-fukutaichou while I go report this to Yamamoto-sou-taichou."

"_Hai!_"

The 4th Division captain left the room, leaving Matsumoto and Hinamori alone together. Matsumoto took a chair and sat down. Hinamori dried her tears and tried to get some sleep. Matsumoto sighed sadly. '_Gin… What are you and Aizen going to do with my taichou…?_'

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Yo, Aizen-sama," Ichimaru greeted casually, giving Aizen a salute with his free hand.

"So you're finally back, Gin. Did you bring him?" Aizen asked, feeling rather hopeful.

"Yep, just like ya asked me to," Ichimaru replied, tossing Aizen an unconscious and bleeding Hitsugaya. Aizen caught Hitsugaya by the haori, and smiled sadistically. "So, whatcha' _**really **_gonna do to 'im, Aizen-sama?"

"You'll see in a while, Gin." Aizen turned to face Ichimaru. "Get the room ready, Gin. And also, bring Hougyoku with you."

For the first time, Ichimaru was shocked by Aizen's orders. His eyes opened, revealing blood red orbs glistening. (A/N: I follow anime, not manga, but I do know that Ichimaru's eyes are green in the manga.) Ichimaru's smile faded. "Ya ain't thinkin' of…"

"I _**am**_, Gin, and I intend to have every single soldier in my army to witness it. Now, less talk and more preparations, Gin. The faster, the better," Aizen smiled very sadistically. "I shall have a little fun with the child first." Aizen dragged Hitsugaya by the haori and walked away to don't-know-where. Ichimaru, on the other hand, stood there shocked, but had to follow Aizen's orders anyway. While Ichimaru was getting the preparations done, Aizen announced to his Arrancar army, "My Arrancar army, you have not been told about this, and I apologise for that. I am going to introduce to you a very special addition to our army…" Aizen pulled and raised Hitsugaya up high so that all of the Arrancars present could see him. Murmuring among them began. Aizen continued, "He is a captain of the Gotei 13, Hitsugaya Toushirou of the 10th Division, and I am inviting every single one of you to witness my testing of Hougyoku's newfound ability on Hitsugaya-kun. And I can assure you that it's a _**good **_one."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_It was cold._

_A frozen wasteland, as one would call it._

_However, not for Hitsugaya Toushirou._

_After all, Hyourinmaru was an ice-type zanpakutou, and since a zanpakutou was part of a shinigami's soul, it would also indirectly mean that Hitsugaya had an icy and frosty soul. In his very own mind and dreams, he would be led to the 'frozen wasteland' – theoretically speaking, a never-ending desert-like snowstorm in the middle of nowhere – and occasionally, there would be strong hail or strong blizzards. _

_Not that Hitsugaya minded about that._

"_Toushirou."_

"_Hyourinmaru?" Hitsugaya looked around for any traces of his zanpakutou, but he couldn't find the dragon anywhere. "Hyourinmaru, where are you?"_

"_Look below you, Toushirou." And he did, and was quite shocked to see that he was standing on Hyourinmaru's head. "Didn't realize it before, huh, Toushirou?"_

"_Hyourinmaru… Since when…?"_

"_Since you've succumbed to sleep, Toushirou. And I'm not glad that you're here."_

"_Doshite? What's the problem, Hyourinmaru?"_

"_With me being able to see and talk to you in this dream… It does not bode well, Toushirou. My fear has truly come alive. Toushirou, it's not safe to stay here. You have to wake up, and quick."_

_The dragon spoke of wisdom, but Hitsugaya wanted answers first. "Hyourinmaru, tell me what's going on…"_

"_I'm afraid I don't have time to explain this to you, Toushirou… But I can tell you this. You've been captured by Aizen Sousuke. And he's intending to make you part of his army."_

"_Oh, like hell I would join that bastard's army."_

"_And like hell I would want to become part of…__**him**__."_

"_Him?"_

"_I've said this before, Toushirou, it's not safe for you to stay in here. You have to wake up now, or else…"_

"_Or else what, Hyourinmaru? Tell me."_

"_Or else…" Hyourinmaru stopped and looked at Hitsugaya with his flaring red eyes. "You will forever become a hollow… and never to awake again."_

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A/N: Argh, cliffhanger. That's what I hate most in fanfics. To think that I actually enjoy leaving people with cliffhangers…

If you don't understand any Japanese terms, you can tell me and I'll get back to you quickly. Any questions or anything concerning this fanfic, please tell me in your reviews. You can flame me, but don't make it sound too hurtful. Please give all the feedback you have. _Onegaishimasu! Arigatou!_

Edit: The 'pauses' in between some places of chapters are in Japanese. In case you're wondering, it is the Japanese name for Bleach, pronounced as 'buriichi'.


	2. 二　に

Author's Note: Well… I seem to update fast. First of all, I would like to thank all of those who have reviewed and put my story under favourites! _Domo arigatou gozaimashita!_ Second, I would like to clarify the pairings. These shall be all the pairings in this fic, including the minor/mild yaoi pairings.

Main pairings: HitsuHina, IchiRuki, MatsuGin

A little of: HitsuMatsu, HinaAizen, RukiRenji

Yaoi: HitsuAizen, HitsuIchi, AizenGin

(a little) OC pairings: HitsuOC, HitsuOC, HinaOC

If you're wondering why there are two HitsuOC pairings, it's because I have 5 OCs in all, and in the mild OC pairings, there will be two OCs paired up with Hitsugaya. Remember that they are _**mild **_pairings. And yaoi pairings are mild too. Not as mild as OC pairings, though.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapter.

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Chapter 2 – Dreams of the Ice Prince! Enter, the Icy Hollow

"Interesting…" Aizen murmured to himself, rubbing his chin. He stared very intently at the giant experimentation lab glass tube filled to the brim with a mysterious green liquid, possibly to preserve the body within the glass tube for a long period of time while the body was unconscious. (A/N: Gawd, I sound sadistic…) Hitsugaya was 'asleep' within the glass tube, not wearing his captain haori anymore. He was wearing the regular shinigami's shihakushou, without the haori and his sword band. (A/N: If you're asking me why…then it's because Hitsugaya looks nice in a regular shihakushou.)

As his hair and shihakushou drifted along with the currents of the green liquid, Aizen felt that the child prodigy actually looked so… peaceful when he was asleep. In fact, Aizen even found him cute. And unfortunately for Hitsugaya, his cuteness would be his downfall. Tubes and wires of all sorts were attached to Hitsugaya's slender body. It was like as if Hitsugaya was undergoing a surgical operation.

"Very interesting indeed…" Aizen went over to the controls and pushed a button. It showed a holographic chart of wavy lines, and Aizen identified the lines as Hitsugaya's brain waves which could be read via the wires connected to Hitsugaya's temples. "I can safely confirm that Hougyoku not only has the ability to 'shinigamify' Hollows but can also 'hollowfy' shinigami. By now, Hitsugaya-kun should be affected by Hougyoku's 'hollowfication' technique. However, his brain waves are showing the exact opposite…"

"Maybe it didn't work, Aizen-sama," Ulquiorra stated monotonously.

"That is impossible, Ulquiorra. Hougyoku is near perfection by now, and should be able to carry out its embodied abilities, like how I used it to create my Arrancar army. Judging from the brain waves and Hitsugaya-kun's peaceful and cute reaction…" Aizen smiled sadistically. "I can assure you that my endless studies of Hitsugaya Toushirou are confirmed to be true."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hollow…? I'm going to become…a hollow?"_

"_Yes, Toushirou. If you do not wake up now, you will succumb to __**his **__will and lose yourself…" Hyourinmaru grimly replied._

"_Wait a second, Hyourinmaru. You haven't told me who __**he **__is. Don't tell me that __**he **__is the bastard Aizen…"_

_Hyourinmaru looked up at the endless snowy skies, watching the snowflakes drop onto his nose slowly. He sighed and replied, "It's better if you don't know yet…"_

"_Hyourinmaru, I __**have **__to know! Who exactly __**IS he**__?"_

_The ice dragon stopped soaring in the endless sky and flew back down to the frozen and snowy grounds. He lied on his body, allowing his wielder to lie on his own back, and continued, "I told you, Toushirou, it's better if you don't know yet…"_

"_Hyourinmaru…!" Hitsugaya began to protest when the dragon tilted his head to stare into Hitsugaya's calm, deep emerald eyes. Hitsugaya just stared back at Hyourinmaru's fiery ruby eyes and waited for an answer._

_Hyourinmaru moved his head back to its original position and sighed once more, "You're just like before, when you were a whole lot younger, Toushirou… You always were the stubborn one, weren't you?"_

_Hitsugaya folded his arms. "I've always been stubborn."_

"_I know that point better than anyone else does."_

"_Obviously."_

"_And knowing you by now, you'll stop at nothing just to get some answers out of me, won't you, Toushirou?"_

"_You really know me now, Hyourinmaru."_

"_Sigh… You're still like before…" Hyourinmaru sighed in defeat. "Do you __**really **__wish to know, Toushirou? Once I tell you, there is no way you can escape your fate."_

"_I don't care about that now, Hyourinmaru. All I want is the truth."_

"_And you will most definitely hear the truth the next time we meet, Toushirou."_

"_What?"_

"_Aizen's calling you to wake up. Heed my advice, Toushirou, and get out of this dream immediately."_

"_But, Hyourinmaru…"_

"_Go."_

_Although he didn't want to, the white-haired prodigy felt like he was drifting away from the frozen wasteland, and t__he last thing that Hitsugaya heard before he awoke to reality was the strong and wild cold icy winds of the snowstorm, howling endlessly at Hyourinmaru, and it eerily sounded like the cry of a hollow…_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_So, you still haven't told him, huh?" the figure smirked. "I thought so. Hyourinmaru __**has **__always been one of the most timid zanpakutou of all time."_

"_Wipe the smirk off that face of yours," Hyourinmaru retorted at the figure. "I'm not used to seein__g someone who has the same face as my wielder smirk like that."_

"_Unfortunately for you, Hyourinmaru, I'm practically stuck like this, so you'll just have to get used to it."_

"_Don't worry; I __**won't**__ even try to get used to it."_

_The figure stepped out of the shadows and folded his arms. "Well, well, getting a bit braver now, are we, Hyourinmaru? Perhaps you should spend less quality time with that chibi wielder of yours and spend more quality time with me, eh?"_

"_Like hell, Koori. I won't become part of you just yet."_

_Koori's smirk just got wider at that comment, showing his piercing Hollow-like fangs. His orange pupils glinted in his black eyeballs, and his hair was eerily exactly like Hitsugaya's. He was wearing the captain's standard shihakushou with the haori, but his shihakushou was pure white instead of black, and his haori was black instead of white. The patterns on the haori were white instead of black, and his sword band was blue. The zanpakutou on his back looked like Hyourinmaru, but the blade was black, the hilt was grey and the guard was silver. He pointed one of his black fingernails at the dragon and warned, "We'll see about that, Hyourinmaru. It won't be long until poor little Hitsu-chan falls under my control."_

"_I trust that he won't."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya's eyes opened slowly. His eyelids still felt as heavy as ever, but what he saw totally woke him up. He found himself practically floating in a weird lab cylinder with green liquid in it, and he couldn't find his haori and sword band anywhere. '_Damn it… Hyourinmaru's attached to my sword band… Where did the sword band go?_'

"Ah, I see that you're awake, Hitsugaya-kun."

Hitsugaya looked down from where he was and his eyes widened in horror. "Aizen?!"

"You look surprised to see me, Hitsugaya-kun."

"You're not exactly the first person I want to see when I wake up. Your face alone just makes me want to skip breakfast, lunch and dinner all in one altogether for three days," Hitsugaya insulted. (A/N: The liquid is just for show. Just take it that the liquid allows Hitsugaya to talk and breathe.)

"Ow, that hurts, Hitsugaya-kun. However, I didn't wake you up from your slumber just to see you." Aizen walked over to a desk full of documents and tattered books. He arranged them neatly and put them all in a big ring folder. Hitsugaya squinted his eyes to inspect the folder's name closely and he nearly swore when he saw the name 'Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru'. Aizen went back to face Hitsugaya from the front of the tube when he was done rearranging everything and continued, "Are you wondering why you are here?"

"I don't give a damn, you bastard," Hitsugaya replied.

"Wow, kids these days… Learning all the bad stuff…"

"I'm not a kid, you bastard! Let me go!"

"If I were to let you, a precious and valuable addition to my army, go back to Seireitei, I'd be damned. And you know me; I always get what I want through dirty tricks. For example, I wanted to get you, and I asked of Gin to sneak into Seireitei and capture you."

"_N…nani_?" Hitsugaya asked, baffled. "What do you want with me?" Now Hitsugaya was afraid. He was afraid of what Aizen would do to him. Hitsugaya might be a captain of the Gotei 13, but he was powerless against Aizen then. Hyourinmaru was probably taken away by him, and all Hitsugaya was left with was kidou, but as long as he was stuck in that freaky tube, there was no way he could even use the weakest of kidou.

"Don't worry, Hitsugaya-kun. I just want to… ask you about something."

"If this is about the upcoming war, I won't reveal Soul Society's top secret plans to you, you bastard."

"It's not about the upcoming war, Hitsugaya-kun. I don't really care about that right now."

Hitsugaya's eyes widened. "You don't? But don't you want to kill Soul Society's royal family and – "

"Oh, nothing of the sort, Hitsugaya-kun. I said it's not about the upcoming war," Aizen moved closer to the tube and smiled sadistically. "It's about you."

Hitsugaya blinked in surprise. "Me? What about me?"

Aizen's sadistic smile widened and he chuckled a chuckle that sent shivers down Hitsugaya's spine and made his hair stand up straighter than usual. Yup, Aizen Sousuke was a real creep, alright. "You'll find out in due time, Hitsugaya-kun… All in due time…" Aizen answered creepily, and he tried to stifle his chuckles. He then continued, "However, like I said before, I didn't wake you up just to have a little chat with you. All I want are some answers – or, more like some _**feedback**_ – from you before I send you back into your peaceful slumber."

"_Kisama…_" Hitsugaya swore under his breath.

"Tell me, Hitsugaya-kun, how did it feel when you were asleep? Did you feel any… _**different**_?"

"Different? Well, I don't feel any different…"

"I see. Then, have you had any conversations with your zanpakutou lately?"

"…"

"Or have you noticed that your zanpakutou is acting a bit more different or more uncomfortable than usual?"

"What the hell is your point?"

Aizen pushed the same button on the controls as before and it showed Hitsugaya a holographic chart of the same wavy lines. Hitsugaya inspected them closely, but couldn't make out what the lines meant. Aizen printed out the chart and showed it to Hitsugaya on closer basis, but Hitsugaya still didn't understand what the chart was about. "This here chart is a record of your brain waves, Hitsugaya-kun. As you can see, when I compare this chart with another chart of your brain waves _**before **_I used the Hougyoku on you…"

Hitsugaya tried to remain stoic and uncaring when, in fact, he was very pissed and shocked to learn that Aizen had used the Hougyoku on him, and even recorded his brain waves like as if he were Mayuri recording down the freakish observations he made. Hitsugaya knew that the Hougyoku had done something to him, and it wasn't giving him illusions of candy. The fact that Hougyoku was used to create Arrancar out of Hollows made Hitsugaya wonder: Was he going to become a Vaizard? No matter what the case, Aizen was more of a creep than Hitsugaya ever knew.

Aizen printed out another chart and showed it to Hitsugaya. Aizen continued, "See, Hitsugaya-kun? Compare the two charts. What difference do you see?" Hitsugaya looked at the chart showing his brain waves before Hougyoku was used on him, then he looked at the chart after Hougyoku was used on him. He looked back and forth for umpteen times, and he found no difference at all. He didn't know if he should be happy or sad, for if there was no difference, it would mean two different kinds of possibilities: One would be that Hougyoku failed to do anything to him, meaning that Hougyoku didn't affect shinigami and could only affect hollows, so it would also mean that Hitsugaya was perfectly normal. The other possibility would be that if Hougyoku worked, it would mean that Hitsugaya was a Vaizard, but if that was the case, Hitsugaya's reiatsu and mind should be out of control just like Ichigo was, but judging the charts, Hitsugaya was perfectly normal. That would also mean that Hitsugaya had _**always **_been a Vaizard, and that was something that no one should party about…

"There is no difference, is there, Hitsugaya-kun?" Aizen spoke. He sounded very satisfied and very excited. "You seem confused, Hitsugaya-kun. Maybe I should ask you again after you wake up from this…"

Before Hitsugaya could even think of replying, he felt an excruciating pain on his forehead and fell into deep slumber once more, and falling back into the frozen wasteland in his dreams.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hmm… I feel a familiar reiatsu quite similar to yours, Hyourinmaru," Koori spoke. Hyourinmaru didn't bother to listen to him. Koori continued, "Well, it seems that little Hitsu-chan is returning. Unfortunately." Koori added._

"_Don't shed crocodile tears, Koori. I know that you're happy that Toushirou is about to come here," Hyourinmaru retorted angrily._

"_Well, there's no point in hiding from you, Hyou-Hyou, so hell yeah, I sure am glad," Koori replied with a smirk on his face._

"_Leave now, before Toushirou notices you."_

"_Hell no."_

"_You'd better leave now, or else…"_

"_Or else?" Koori taunted. When Hyourinmaru didn't reply, Koori scoffed, "Hah! I thought so. Hyou-Hyou is __**really **__a timid zanpakutou after all. I pity Hitsu-chan for having such a timid and useless zanpakutou like you. Don't you think that Hitsu-chan would appreciate you more once we join together?"_

"_Like hell I would succumb to your will, Koori. Now just leave!"_

"_No can do, Hyourinmaru. I want to see the brat."_

_The familiar icy reiatsu filled the entire frozen wasteland, and Koori and Hyourinmaru felt Hitsugaya's presence coming closer and closer. Hyourinmaru had to chase Koori away before Hitsugaya arrived and notice Koori. "There's no point in seeing Toushirou now. He's not ready to see you."_

"_What do you mean he isn't ready? Are you implying that he doesn't accept me, his inner hollow?"_

"_Knowing Toushirou by now, he'll __**never **__acknowledge you as his –"_

"_Whatever the case, Hyourinmaru," Koori interrupted. "I'll need the brat to accept and acknowledge my existence, and to do just that, I'll need to see him. Anyway," Koori looked down at his body and made a disgusted look. "I don't want to stay in this form."_

"_You have another form which I don't know of?"_

_Hitsugaya was getting very close to them by then. Koori smirked smugly. "Of course. That is why I want to return to my original form as soon as possible, and I'll need Hitsu-chan to accept me in order for me to revert back to my original form."_

"_What the hell are you-?"_

_Before Hyourinmaru could even continue, Hitsugaya appeared and fell on top of the snow. He got up and dusted the snow off his shihakushou which was deprived of its captain haori and sword band, and looked up. He noticed Hyourinmaru and another boy who looked exactly like him except for the colours. Hitsugaya walked towards them. "Hyourinmaru… Who is he?"_

"_Hyourinmaru ain't obliged to answer your question, Hitsu-chan," Koori intercepted. "Because __**I'll **__be doing the answering."_

"_Who are you?"_

"_Isn't it obvious? I'm you."_

"_Don't listen to his nonsense, Toushirou!" the ice dragon protested, trying to prevent Koori from filling Hitsugaya's mind with all the rubbish._

"_I won't, Hyourinmaru," Hitsugaya assured. "All I want are answers."_

"_That's the right attitude now, child," Koori muttered under his breath._

"_So what do mean by you being me? And what's your name? Tell me," Hitsugaya asked, getting a little more demanding than asking._

"_You want the answer to that? Well, you'll get your desired answers right here and right now!" Koori unsheathed his Hyourinmaru-like zanpakutou and tried to slash it at Hitsugaya who avoided it in time. Koori scoffed and smirked. "I'm your inner hollow, little Hitsu-chan, and my name is Koori. My full name is Hitsugaya Koorimasu."_

_Hitsugaya choked back thousands of gasps when he heard from Koori that Koori shared the same family name as he did, but remained indifferent. Koori slashed his zanpakutou at Hitsugaya, managing to land an attack, causing Hitsugaya to bleed. "Toushirou!" Hyourinmaru called out concernedly but Koori raised his hand at the dragon and used some mysterious force that made Hyourinmaru frozen on the spot._

"_Stay out of this, Hyourinmaru. I ain't gonna let you help your precious wielder this time round." Koori chased after a running Hitsugaya, and he used shunpo to __catch up with Hitsugaya. Hitsugaya, noticing that Koori was catching up to him, used shunpo as well, but he was shocked that even shunpo was slow compared to Koori's shunpo. "Scared, aren't you, Hitsu-chan, to know that I'm a whole lot faster than you are? Don't be. You haven't seen what I can do yet, Tou-chan."_

"_Tou-chan…? But that's what-!" Koori punched Hitsugaya in the stomach, pushing Hitsugaya off his feet and falling onto the snow on his back. Hitsugaya coughed a little and wiped the blood from his mouth. "You looked into my memories?"_

"_Of course not. I've always been you, so whatever you experience, __**I **__experience! And whatever you feel, __**I **__feel! Whatever you think, __**I **__think! I've always been at least a part of you, or even you all this time, so there's no way I can look into your memories when we share the exact same soul, Tou-chan!" Koori snapped, raising his hands towards Hitsugaya, getting ready for a kidou spell. "Hakudo no sanjyuusan: Shoukatsui!" Blue reiatsu emerged from Koori's palms and hit Hitsugaya right on the chest. Hitsugaya fell backwards and coughed out some more blood. Koori ran up to the fallen Hitsugaya and grabbed him by the collar of the shihakushou. "I know you're a whole lot better than this, Hitsugaya Toushirou."_

"_Who __**are **__you…?" Hitsugaya asked, getting scared of Koori. He wasn't as scared as when he faced Aizen. Koori was a much more intimidating opponent, because according to Koori himself, Koori was him, and he was Koori. He was facing his greatest opponent: himself._

"_Psh. Must I repeat myself?" Koori tossed Hitsugaya aside and he sheathed his zanpakutou on his back like Hitsugaya did with Hyourinmaru. "My name is Koori. My full name is Hitsugaya Koorimasu, but you can just call me Koori. And I…" Koori appeared right in front of Hitsugaya, zanpakutou in hand, ready to slice Hitsugaya's head off once Hitsugaya rebelled. "am your inner hollow."_

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A/N: Yay! My OC makes his appearance in this chapter! He is Hitsugaya's inner hollow, and I know you are very curious and pretty much confused, but everything will be explained as the story develops. If I'm not wrong, this story can go up till about at least 15 chapters long. The maximum should be about 20 plus chapters, or 30 chapters. It's pretty long, yes I know that, and I like long stories. (smiles)

Let me elaborate more on the name Koori. I checked up in the Japanese-English dictionary. Koori means freeze, which would suit Koori since he is Hitsugaya's inner hollow and wields the element of ice. The answer as to why Koori has the same family name as Hitsugaya will be answered later, but you can guess if you want. If someone manages to guess correctly, then I'll be very astounded because the situation is actually very complicated. Anyway, Koori's full name is Hitsugaya Koorimasu, and Koorimasu means 'to freeze'. Koori is a short form, again meaning 'freeze'. Not much of a difference, except that Koorimasu is a verb and Koori is…well, I don't know, maybe a verb.

Ok, I'm going very random.

ああああああああああああああああああああ！！！

Sorry. I said I was being random.


	3. 三　さん

Author's Note: I have no idea what to say… Except that questions shall be answered soon.

Oh yeah, a lot of thanks for everyone reviewing and reading out there! Arigatou gozaimasu!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters. I only own OCs. And I made Hitsugaya's past up. And for the exceptionally hilarious Shinigami Zukan at the end, I do not own anything except the idea.

Hold on a sec… I only own OCs and plots. Bah, you know what I own and what I don't own anyway.

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Chapter 3 – Hitsugaya Koorimasu, Shinigami or Hollow?

_He felt the cold strong gusts of icy wind blow against his face, and small particles of ice and snow began to form on his sharp yet young facial features. Yet, he did not feel numb, for he was already numbed with fear. Fear of the inner hollow in him that appeared suddenly, and that picked a fight with him._

_It was a pretty terrifying experience for Hitsugaya Toushirou. He woke up early in the morning in his division, expecting yet another normal day in Seireitei, carrying out his daily activities like chasing his lazy fukutaichou around or hanging out with a recovering Hinamori, or even just burying himself with paperwork all day long. But noooo – he just had to get experimented on by a sadistic sadist who sent his hypocritical right-hand man to capture him personally. And the worst had yet to come for Hitsugaya._

An inner hollow with the same family name as he did was bad enough, but Hitsugaya Koorimasu also had the same face and body structure as Hitsugaya had, and Koori could also wield a zanpakutou much like Hyourinmaru in appearance, and could even use kidou.

_And it hit Hitsugaya like a lightning bolt striking a tree._

_Hollows don't ever have the ability to use kidou, and they never will. Hitsugaya found it very suspicious. Koori was Hitsugaya's inner hollow, and it should be taken to consideration about the word 'hollow'. Hollows shouldn't even have any shinigami abilities, let alone having the ability to fire kidou and wield a zanpakutou. It didn't make any sense to Hitsugaya that Koori was able to do all that, and yet, even though he claimed to be his inner hollow, he still hadn't displayed any hollow abilities such as cero. (A/N: I'm not sure if Ichigo's inner hollow displayed the same characteristics though… However, I did see him use cero.)_

_It seriously didn't make any sense. And Hitsugaya, being Hitsugaya, most definitely wanted answers._

_He looked at Koori with a hard, cold glare and managed to shunpo out of the way before Koori could use his Hyourinmaru-like zanpakutou against Hitsugaya. Koori was surprised at first to see that Hitsugaya managed to escape his clutches, and was even more surprised when he felt a strong kick on his back. He fell on his face with a thump and was groaning in pain. Koori stood up immediately and wiped the snow off his face. "Great reflexes, Tou-chan. I never thought that you were even capable of escaping me for a while there."_

_Hitsugaya held up his hands, palms facing Koori. "I don't appreciate the compliment."_

"_Hmm hmm," Koori hummed excitedly. "I see that you're getting a kidou spell ready."_

"_And exactly why are you so excited about that?" Hitsugaya enquired, his temper rising._

"_Oh, no apparent reason…" Koori clapped his hands and held his hands up, his palms also facing Hitsugaya. They glowed brightly and Koori continued with a smug smirk on his face, "Except that I can beat you to the chase, lil' Hitsu-chan!" The light emitted from his palms sped towards Hitsugaya and completely bound him to the spot. Hitsugaya's eyes widened in shock as he tried to struggle against the bakudou used on him. Koori scoffed, "It's useless, Tou-chan. Even though I used the weakest bakudou on you, you won't be able to resist it. Remember what they taught you in Shinigami Academy, Tou-chan, in the lessons of kidou."_

_Hitsugaya blinked as he tried to remember when he was in his first and, subsequently, last year in Shinigami Academy, recalling the kidou lessons he learnt there. It had been quite easy to comprehend, but it was challenging for him to practice the kidou spells correctly. Incantations were one thing; the other was the accuracy. Although his kidou spells were, strangely, devastatingly strong for his age, his aim got a bit off and he found it hard to control the direction of the kidou he used. As time passed, he managed to get everything under complete control, and on the day of graduation, his kidou teacher had gone up to him to congratulate him on finishing the course within such a short period of time, and he remembered the last words of wisdom she gave him._

'_Remember, Toushirou,' she had said, 'Kidou is an essential tool in combat, and shinigami cannot rely on their zanpakutou forever. So, promise me that you'll continue to train in kidou and build up that special reiatsu of yours.'_

'_What does reiatsu have anything to do with kidou?' he had asked._

'_Reiatsu is your spiritual energy, and kidou is a form of spiritual magic. The point is, Toushirou, both can be very powerful when built up and trained. If you have a high reiatsu, and you release it, it can send weaker enemies on their knees. And in order for kidou to be devastatingly strong, your reiatsu would have to be a whole lot stronger than yours is right now,' she had told him. 'Remember, Toushirou. The power of kidou spells varies on the power of the user, and if your reiatsu is strong, even a low-level kidou spell can be utterly powerful and destructive. So please promise me to practice kidou even though you are now a shinigami.'_

_That had been it all this time. If Koori had a high reiatsu, even the low-level bakudou, Sai, would be so powerful that not even Hitsugaya would be able to break free of it. Heck, Hitsugaya was in doubt of whether even Ichigo could break free from that bakudou Koori just sent him. Hitsugaya looked back at the frozen Hyourinmaru. Had he also been a victim of Koori's exceptionally powerful bakudou?_

"_So you finally got it, haven't you?" Koori snapped Hitsugaya out of his trance-like state. "You finally realized that with my current level of reiatsu, not even you or Hyou-Hyou can break free from my bakudou. Come on, that was only Sai; if you can't even break free from the weakest bakudou, I highly doubt that you can handle Geki."_

"_Shut up," Hitsugaya snapped. He closed his eyes and focused on releasing his reiatsu that would be at the right level; just enough to break free from the bakudou. A wave of icy cold reiatsu emerged from Hitsugaya's body, and the snow on the ground was sent flying. Only Koori and Hyourinmaru, still frozen and bound by Koori's bakudou, stood still on the ground, not affected by the high reiatsu in the misty cold air. The freezing cold reiatsu formed ice around him, and even froze the bakudou energy in its place._

_Koori blinked and took a step back in shock. "Oh my gawd, is that even possible? Not even I know of this…"_

_The frozen bakudou was evident on Hitsugaya's body, and Hitsugaya had stopped struggling against it. He sealed back his reiatsu and moved his arms. Alas, the ice cracked and broke, setting Hitsugaya free at last. "Now…" Hitsugaya breathed, holding up his hands. "It's my turn."_

＜ブリーチ＞

"Aizen-sama…" Szayel nudged. "Aizen-sama…"

"What is it, Szayel?" Aizen asked, getting a little irritated. Szayel had been calling his name for a few minutes now, and it was ruining Aizen's concentration on observing the unconscious Hitsugaya still confined in the tube.

"Aizen-sama, the boy's brain waves are getting out of the charts…" Szayel explained as he pushed a button, showing a holographic chart of Hitsugaya's current brain waves. It was indeed getting out of control; the lines were curving up and down, up and down, up and down continuously, and there were even instances in which the lines became one straight line, thus leading Aizen to believe that the white-haired prodigy had passed out, but when the lines moved once more, Aizen felt relieved.

"I guess I'll have to wake him up before he really dies…" Aizen murmured.

"But Aizen-sama…"

"Now what is it?"

"Don't you think it'll be better for the boy if he is left asleep for once?"

"And why is that, Szayel? Do you wish for my test subject to die?" Aizen demanded.

"Nothing of the sort, Aizen-sama, truly. You see, according to my reports and investigations on the boy, I have discovered that what you've been studying about him all along had been wrong."

"All of it, Szayel?"

"All of it, Aizen-sama."

Aizen rubbed his forehead and groaned, "My efforts had all gone to waste then…"

"Not necessarily so, Aizen-sama, for I have discovered the truth about the boy after reading between the lines," Szayel picked up a stack of papers and handed the stack to Aizen and bowed. "This is what I have discovered so far."

Aizen looked through the papers carefully, and when he got to the end, he was putting back the same sadistic smile he usually wore. He handed the papers back to Szayel. "Thank you, Szayel. Keep it carefully. It is very important in the situation right now. I understand fully why you want me to let Hitsugaya-kun sleep for a little while more…"

"Hai, Aizen-sama." And Szayel went back to work.

Aizen turned to face Hitsugaya, his sadistic smile getting wider and wider. "You are indeed very interesting, Hitsugaya-kun. Both of you…"

＜ブリーチ＞

"_Jikai seyo, rondanini no kuro inu! Ichidoku shi, yaki harai. Mizukara nodo o kaki kiru ga ii! Bakudou no kyuu: Geki!" commanded Hitsugaya as soon as he finished the incantation for the 9th bakudou, and red light immediately engulfed Koori. Koori stood there, completely paralyzed, and his eyes were widened in shock. Hitsugaya ran up towards the still Koori and punched Koori in the face, causing the still-frozen Koori fall on his back, but he was able to talk, most likely due to the forceful impact from Hitsugaya's rough punch. As Koori was paralyzed, the bakudou on Hyourinmaru was released and Hyourinmaru once again soared in the frozen heavens of Hitsugaya's mindscape._

"_Right… You got me now, kid. What do you want?" asked Koori, still quite smug._

"_I want to get some answers from you," Hitsugaya answered directly._

"_Heh, not like you'll get any answers from me!"_

"_You said so yourself before, that you would be doing the answering instead of Hyourinmaru!"_

"_And you trusted me?" Seeing Hitsugaya hesitate, Koori laughed it off and said, "How pathetic… Hitsugaya Toushirou, captain of the Gotei 13, known as the child prodigy and the youngest captain in the history of captains… also trusts his own inner hollow. Ha! How pathetic can you get, Tou-chan?"_

_Hitsugaya punched Koori in the face once more, careful about hitting any other part of Koori's body. "Stop calling me Tou-chan!"_

_Koori smiled, getting closer to one of Hitsugaya's weak points. "Aww… Am I bringing back bad memories of the past, Toushirou?"_

"_Shut. Up."_

"_Is my name-calling making you remember her, the one you failed to protect?"_

"_Shut up!"_

"_The one who sweetly and passionately calls you Tou-chan ever since you've met in the Academy? The one who disappeared with her sisters on your graduation day? The one you saw __**coated in blood**__?"_

"_I told you to SHUT UP!!" Hitsugaya hopped onto Hyourinmaru's head and telepathically told Hyourinmaru to send a gush of freezing icy water towards Koori. Hyourinmaru agreed to do so, and the strong waves of the water froze Koori on top of the bakudou used on him. Hitsugaya hopped off Hyourinmaru and crushed the ice in which Koori was encased in, causing Koori to break free from Geki. However, Hitsugaya had a backup plan and sent Sai flying towards Koori, causing Koori to fall to the ground with his arms tied to his back._

"_Sigh… You got me again…"_

"_Now will you answer my questions?"_

"_I suppose so, Tou-chan."_

_Hitsugaya restrained himself from punching Koori and regained his cool calm composure and asked calmly, "What or who are you exactly? I want the truth this time."_

"_Psh. I hate repeating myself… I already told you, I am Koori. Hitsugaya Koorimasu. Your inner hollow. Why is it that the information can't get through that thick head of yours?!"_

"_I said I want the truth!"_

"_It is the truth! What more do you want of me?"_

"_I meant by asking you to tell me your origins! How the hell did you get in my head?! How the hell did you become my inner hollow?! Why the hell do you share the same family name as I do?! Huh?!" Hitsugaya demanded, getting seriously pissed off._

"_Calm yourself, Toushirou," advised the dragon behind him. Hitsugaya immediately calmed down._

_Koori replied, "Do you really want to know, Toushirou?"_

"… _Yes."_

_Koori sighed, "Fine. Let me ask you this first: Do you remember your past life as a human being?"_

"_Well… The memories are a bit fuzzy, but they are there…"_

"_How old were you when you died?"_

"_Well… 4, I think…"_

"_Do you remember seeing a boy about your age clad in an ice blue kimono, reaching out his hand and giving you a sword that resembled Hyourinmaru, saying, 'Do not worry. Here, take this sword, and you shall be safe'?"_

"_Well…" Hitsugaya was very hesitant. He tried to remember, but everything about his human childhood was very blur and fuzzy. "I only remember seeing a bright light…"_

"_Then do you remember seeing the sword fuse with you?"_

"… _I guess…" Hitsugaya blinked and asked, "What does this have anything to do with now?"_

"_Everything, Toushirou," Koori replied grimly, giving Hitsugaya a cold stare. "Everything."_

"_Let's just put that aside for now, and just answer my damn questions, will you?!"_

"_Ok, ok, fine. The thing is… I'm not exactly a hollow, and I'm not exactly a shinigami either."_

"_Then what are you? And answer my questions all at once."_

"_I'll answer truthfully then. I have been born along with you, Toushirou. I share the same birthday as you do; the same blood; the same humane origins. Long story short, I was born within you when you were born, Toushirou. And I became your inner hollow for unexplainable reasons…" Seeing Hitsugaya ready to punch him once more, Koori continued quickly, "…which I'll reveal to you once you escape from Hueco Mondo." When Hitsugaya calmed down, Koori resumed, "And of course, since I was born with you, I obviously share the same family name as you."_

"_And what exactly are you, then? You claim to be my inner hollow…" Hitsugaya eyed Koori warily. "And yet, you display key traits of a shinigami: the shihakushou, the zanpakutou and even the kidou spells. And as of now, you have yet to display any key traits and abilities of a hollow, especially the cero. You don't even have a hole in your chest. What exactly are you, Koori?"_

"_I already told you; I'm neither shinigami nor hollow."_

"_Then what exactly are you?! A Vaizard or an Arrancar?!"_

"_Neither!"_

"_So what are you?!"_

"_What am I?! WHAT AM I?!" Koori glared at Hitsugaya, struggling to break free of the bakudou. Hitsugaya felt Koori's reiatsu getting higher and higher, and it was so strong that it sent Hitsugaya to his knees. Hitsugaya choked back a gasp when he saw Koori right above him, unsheathing his zanpakutou and getting ready to slash at Hitsugaya anytime. "The thing is, Toushirou…" Koori brought down his blade and screamed, "I DON'T KNOW!!!"_

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A/N: Sheesh, maybe I should put this under Drama as well… Argh, if only there was a third genre category… Maybe I could make the pairings very mild and replace Romance with Drama. I can't replace Mystery, because you are probably full of questions to ask about Hitsugaya and Koori by now, and it's not like I'll reveal everything about Koori in one chapter.

(re-reads chapter and expression becomes: o.O) Wow, I had no idea I made Koori that dramatic…

Edit: I just realised that I haven't told you about what the incantation meant. This is the translation: Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini! Look upon yourself with horror and then claw out your own throat! Binding Spell no. 9: Hit!

Edit 2: I have decided to cut out the Elmo's World – Pink Version, because well, Shinigami Zukan does consist of the characters acting weird and funny… But I made Aizen way OOC, and that's not very Shinigami Zukan-like, so I decided to cut it out. For those who aren't happy with my decision, don't worry. I have also decided to post a fic that consists of all of my Shinigami Zukan ideas I'll be using for my Bleach stories so you can check this version out.


	4. 四　よん

Author's Note: … I still have nothing to say.

Argh! What is _**wrong **_with me?!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 4 – Aftermath in Seireitei! The Next Target, Hinamori!

Hinamori glanced up at the cloudless sky of Seireitei.

Her mind trailed back to when Ichimaru showed himself before Hitsugaya and her, trying to find the reason why Ichimaru would want to capture Hitsugaya for Aizen. She couldn't think of a reason why. And she was in no condition to.

Her wounds had not healed; both physical and mental wounds. The physical wounds were no problem to Unohana, for she had superb medical skills and her medical zanpakutou, but Hinamori had also suffered mental wounds. She was shaken to see Hitsugaya so… _**helpless**_. So… _**easily captured**_ by the enemy. She didn't want to believe that Hitsugaya could be so easily taken away by Ichimaru like that. She would never admit that Hitsugaya was weak, for he was not.

However, she still couldn't find the reason why Hitsugaya was so easily taken. Surely there must've been something Ichimaru said to Hitsugaya to threaten him! Or perhaps it was Aizen in disguise. Hinamori blinked in anger.

"Aizen…" she hissed quietly in her room. She clenched her fists. "Aizen Sousuke, I will never forgive you. Never."

How long had she been in Aizen's grasp and control? How long had she been his puppet in his devilish scheme? How long did it take for her to realize it, the mistake of believing him so easily. She was so gullible! So naïve, so easily manipulated. And it was because of that that caused Hitsugaya so much pain and hurt.

He had been trying to wake her up from her dream, but she didn't wake up. He had been trying to show her the truth, but she daren't look. He had been trying so hard to tell her, but she didn't listen. He tried all means and ways, but she simply ignored them, until she finally came to a realization that Aizen, her so-called perfect captain, was truly a traitor.

Hinamori closed her eyes and sighed, remembering the day she finally woke up for real.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hinamori, listen to me. Aizen is really…"_

"_Stop it, Hitsugaya-kun! I've already told you! Aizen-taichou is being controlled by Ichimaru-taichou! He isn't a traitor! I __**know **__he isn't!" Hinamori shouted, stomping off in the opposite direction. The conversation was getting nowhere except telling her 'lies' about Aizen._

_Hitsugaya cursed under his breath, and tried to catch up to her. "Hinamori, I won't stop. I will continue telling you and showing you the truth!"_

"_The truth? I'll tell you the truth, Hitsugaya-kun! The truth is that Aizen-taichou is being manipulated by the real enemy! And I'm going to find out who is so daring to control Aizen-taichou like that!" Hinamori declared, pumping her fist in the air both enthusiastically and angrily._

"_You're not listening to me, Hinamori."_

"_Of course I'm not. For all I know, you might be under the enemy's control too, Hitsugaya-kun."_

_Hitsugaya nearly lost his temper, but he tried to regain his cool composure. How long until she will finally learn of the truth, he wondered to himself. "That's absurd, Hinamori."_

"_What is?"_

_Hitsugaya sighed, "The fact that you think that everyone except you is under the 'real' enemy's control."_

"_Huh?! That's not absurd! I __**know **__it's true! It's got to be!"_

_Hitsugaya grabbed her by the wrist, unwilling to let go. "Do you have proof, Hinamori?"_

"_Proof…? There's no need for proof!" Hinamori tried pushing Hitsugaya's hands off hers. "Let go of me, Shirou-chan!"_

"_I won't!" Hitsugaya shouted back. His grip tightened till she stopped struggling. "You don't have proof, but I do, Hinamori." And he carried her bridal-style before he shunpo-ed off back to the 5__th__ Division office that used to belong to Aizen. He let her down and opened the door for her politely. She 'hmphed' and walked in, ready for whatever proof there was. After all, she had been in Aizen's office for very often. What kind of proof was there?_

_She was wrong._

"_H-huh…? Wha… what is this…?" Hinamori gasped, blinking. She looked around the empty office, not believing what she was seeing. The floor was coated with blood, and the desk was completely trashed. The office reeked of the smell of blood, and she felt nauseous. She covered her mouth, trying to hold back her tears. "N-no… B-but it's always clean a-and tidy…"_

_Hitsugaya grabbed her shoulders to calm her down. "Hinamori… When you fell into a coma, Yamamoto-soutaichou ordered all Captains to inspect every place Aizen had gone to. We were all assigned different places, and I was assigned to his office. This was what I found, and what I have decided to leave as."_

"_N-no, I won't believe it…"_

"_After I reported back to Yamamoto-soutaichou, he decided to lock this room and forbid any access to anyone except me. I have no idea why only I am allowed here, but I suppose it is because I discovered it. You were unconscious throughout everything, Hinamori. There was no way you learnt about it. So now is a good time to tell you and to show you that Aizen Sousuke is all a fake!"_

_Hinamori felt tears streaming down her face. She rushed out of the room with Hitsugaya running after her and calling her name. She didn't want to listen to anyone right now. All she wanted was to get away from everything. She didn't want to live in reality; it was too frightening for her. She didn't want to go back to living in her dream; she would be woken up by reality in the end. She had nowhere to go, and she didn't know what to do, except run away from everything. Memories of Aizen flashed in her mind, and she struggled to forget all of them. She continued running._

"_Hinamori!" Hitsugaya called after her. "Hinamori!"_

"_Go away, Shirou-chan!"_

"_You know I won't! Hinamori!!! Stop running!"_

"_And you know I won't too, Shirou-chan!"_

"_How many times do I have to tell you to wake up?! How long until you wake up from your dream, Momo?!"_

_Hinamori immediately stopped dead in her tracks and Hitsugaya crashed into her accidentally. Hitsugaya lied down on Hinamori's back, and Hinamori was lying on her chest, groaning in pain. Hitsugaya sweat dropped. Hinamori glared. She screamed for Hitsugaya to get off her immediately, and of course he got off her with a blush. She stood up, blushing. She looked at Hitsugaya shyly. "Ne, Shirou-chan… Did you just say my name?"_

"_Huh? Yeah… So?"_

_Hinamori smiled. "Nothing, Toushirou." Hitsugaya blinked before Hinamori continued, "It's just that… it's been a long time since we called each other by our real names instead of name-calling everyday… right?"_

_Hitsugaya stared at her for a while before he blinked and smiled. The Bed-Wetter Momo of the past was returning. "Ah. It's been a long time."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Matsumoto sighed sadly. It had been days since Hitsugaya's disappearance. The 10th Division was coping pretty well, but not as well as when their Captain was present. Matsumoto couldn't help but agree: Hitsugaya was indispensable in the 10th Division. Ever since he was captured, many of the seated officers and random shinigami began to lose their morale since their taichou was no longer with them, and many of them took leave every day. The others remained neutral, still willing to take orders from Matsumoto, the second-in-command since she was the fukutaichou, but they didn't carry out orders as quickly as they did when Hitsugaya gave out orders to them.

Matsumoto sighed again, gulping down her sake. She picked a few bottles and walked out of her division. She decided to visit Hinamori.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"… Therefore, I hereby conclude that Hitsugaya Toushirou, former Captain of the 10th Division, is labeled as one of the Missing Shinigami cases," Yamamoto concluded with a stoic expression on his face. The other Captains bowed their heads as a form of agreement, even though most of them didn't want to think of Hitsugaya as a 'former Captain'. Yamamoto spoke once more, "Kurotsuchi-taichou."

"_Hai_," Mayuri replied.

"You are in charge of the Investigation Division, so please make a record of Hitsugaya Toushirou's missing case."

"_Hai._"

"Dismissed."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Nani?! _Missing?!"

"Hinamori-fukutaichou, please lower down your volume…" Unohana kindly requested.

Hinamori lowered her voice, but she was still shouting. "Hitsugaya-kun isn't missing! He can't be! He must've been taken to Hueco Mondo! That's the only place Aizen is in! If Aizen captured Hitsugaya-kun, Hitsugaya-kun must've been taken there!"

"Hinamori-fukutaichou…"

"_Onegai, _Unohana-taichou. You have to talk Yamamoto-soutaichou around."

"Hinamori-fukutaichou, Hueco Mondo is a dangerous place. We have no idea where Aizen is situated at in Hueco Mondo, but we cannot take any risks. If we were to talk Yamamoto-soutaichou around and send our troops there, we might lose all of them. We can't afford to lose any more men on our side, Hinamori-fukutaichou."

"_Demo…!_"

"Please, rest. We'll continue when you get better." Unohana walked out of the room and closed the door. Even though she could no longer hear what Hinamori was saying, Hinamori still said it.

"_Hai._"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Ya called fer me, Aizen-sama?" Ichimaru asked, bowing to the sadist sitting comfortably on his throne.

"Yes, indeed I have, Gin. I want you to go back to Seireitei."

"Huh? What fer? Thought ya got what ya wanted already, Aizen-sama."

"I have, Gin, and I want to ensure that I have Hitsugaya-kun stay in my army for good. Knowing him by now, he won't remain loyal. In fact, he won't ever pledge loyalty to me. So I need to ensure that that doesn't happen."

"I understand, Aizen-sama."

"So go to Seireitei at once, Gin, and take back Hinamori-kun with you."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The alarms blared, alerting all of Seireitei that an intruder had infiltrated Seireitei successfully. Shinigami on standby got ready to take on the intruder while the Captains got themselves ready for battle too. A rip in the dimensions appeared and the foxy ex-taichou of the 3rd Division stepped out casually. The shinigami pointed their zanpakutou towards him. Ichimaru scratched his head. "Ah, I shoulda've hidden my reiatsu. How careless o' me."

"Ichimaru…" Hinamori hissed quietly, watching everything from the room in the 4th Division. She got off her bed and jumped out of the window. She rushed towards the spot where Ichimaru appeared which wasn't far, and held onto Tobiume's hilt. "Ichimaru, I won't forgive you…"

While the foxy Ichimaru was getting distracted by all the other shinigami, Hinamori unsheathed Tobiume, getting ready for battle. She took the chance and charged towards Ichimaru at blinding speed. "Hinamori-fukutaichou!" the standby shinigami all chorused. "Please, don't do anything rash!"

Hinamori obviously didn't listen to them and brought down Tobiume's blade at Ichimaru who protected himself by using Shinsou's blade. Hinamori jumped away, still holding onto Tobiume. Ichimaru smiled. "Why, if it ain't the chibi taichou's girlfriend. How sweet, ya came to ask me where yer boyfriend is, right?" Ichimaru stated sarcastically.

"Cut the crap, Ichimaru, and tell me! Where is Hitsugaya-kun?!" Hinamori demanded.

"Cool down, will ya? I'll tell ya where he is."

"Really?" Hinamori asked in surprise. That seemed easy. _**Too **_easy.

"Uh-huh. In fact…" Ichimaru shunpo-ed over to her and placed Shinsou against her neck. She felt the blood trickling down her neck. She gasped. "I'll take ya to 'im."

"Get away from her!" Ichimaru turned around to see whose voice that belonged to, and smiled even more when he saw the long white-haired captain running towards him, zanpakutou unsheathed, and with his flamboyantly dressed friend as well. Ukitake jumped towards Ichimaru, bringing down his zanpakutou's blade.

Ichimaru shunpo-ed away from the attack, and Ukitake gasped. "Is that all ya got, Ukitake-taichou? That ain't enough ta' beat me, 'specially in yer condition." Without warning, two zanpakutou blades charged towards him and stabbed him on his back. Ichimaru's eyes widened and he coughed out blood. He felt the zanpakutous getting pulled out and he coughed even more blood out, giving Ukitake the chance to rescue Hinamori from Ichimaru's grasp. Ukitake pulled Hinamori away while Kyouraku jumped off Ichimaru's back with his blood-stained twin zanpakutou. Ichimaru stood up, smiled and wiped the blood of his mouth. "_Ara, ara_, ya gangin' up on me. That ain't very nice of ya, Ukitake-taichou, Kyouraku-taichou."

"Ichimaru Gin, I have no idea what Sousuke-kun wants with Toushirou-kun, but it would do us all a favour if you tell us where Toushirou-kun is now," Kyouraku calmly responded, completely ignoring Ichimaru's sentence.

"No can do, Kyouraku-taichou. Sorry," Ichimaru replied casually, scratching his head.

"Then we shall take you to see Yamamoto-soutaichou," Ukitake continued. "A traitor like you truly deserves the punishment you ever get."

The dimensional rip suddenly appeared behind Ichimaru, and it felt like a big vacuum sucking up everything in its path. Ichimaru stood there calmly with a huge grin on his face. Ukitake and Kyouraku jumped away while all the standby shinigami went out of the way. "_Kuso…_" Ukitake cursed. "Getting away with it and we can't do anything…"

"There really is nothing we can do now, Juushirou," his comrade replied. "If we go down there, we'll only get sucked in and be in the same state as Toushirou-kun. There's nothing we can do except watch the traitor go scot-free."

Ichimaru smiled and shouted to Hinamori, "Eh, Hinamori-kun, got somethin' ta' tell ya before I go off!" Hinamori 'hmphed' and Ichimaru continued with a very evil grin, "Chibi taichou… says hi."

"Ah?!" Hinamori gasped. "S-Shirou-chan…"

"Too bad ya can't come with me, Hinamori-kun. Aizen-sama misses ya, and so does the chibi taichou," Ichimaru said before he got sucked into the dimensional rip and disappeared for good.

Hinamori broke down and cried.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"I see…" Yamamoto mumbled, looking at his students. Ukitake and Kyouraku had given their accounts about Ichimaru's invasion and the fact that Hitsugaya was very much alive and not missing. Yamamoto thought about it for a while before he spoke, "Very well. I will call for a captains' meeting for this matter. Pass it on to the other captains immediately, Ukitake-taichou, Kyouraku-taichou. I'm calling for a captains' meeting right now."

"_Hai_," both students replied, bowing their heads. They shunpo-ed off to all of the Divisions to inform the Captains of the meeting that was to take place at once. Before even much time was lost, all of the Captains turned up for the meeting, even Zaraki, surprisingly. It turned out that he was having trouble getting back to his Division and ended up in the meeting hall anyway. What perfect timing.

"I will commence the meeting," Yamamoto began. "First, I have been informed that Hitsugaya-taichou is currently being held captive in Hueco Mondo by defected Captain Aizen Sousuke. We haven't any clue as to why Aizen is holding Hitsugaya-taichou captive, but we must get Hitsugaya-taichou back immediately before he ends up betraying us as well."

"_Demo, _Yamamoto-soutaichou, I believe that the boy will not betray us," Byakuya spoke up. "The boy has always been faithful to Soul Society. He has no reason to betray us."

"I agree with you, Kuchiki-taichou, but," Yamamoto paused before continuing, "We can't afford to lose any more of our captains to the enemy." Ukitake and Kyouraku had noticed Yamoto's hesitation in his answer, but said nothing. Yamamoto continued, "Second, I will hereby give everyone permission to break into Aizen's hideout and rescue Hitsugaya-taichou. You are thereby allowed to go there anytime you want, and with anyone you want. It's all up to you, Captains, but make a wise decision. Remember, we can't afford to lose any more of our Captains, especially Hitsugaya-taichou."

The other captains got slightly baffled. Ukitake spoke, "Sir, I know we can't lose any more of the Gotei 13 Captains, but why 'especially' Hitsugaya-taichou? Is there something special about him that the enemy is targeting?"

This time, Zaraki spoke, "Nah, it doesn't make sense. Shouldn't the enemy target the more elite Captains rather than pick on the less experienced one? After all, the midget hasn't been Captain for a very long time, and even though I don't even know my zanpakutou's name, I still have higher reiatsu than he does."

"Are you implying that Hitsugaya-taichou is a weakling?"

"Of course, Ukitake! I bet if you put him and Yachiru in a battle, Yachiru will win without a doubt!"

"Why you… You shouldn't criticize your fellow taichou like that!"

"And why not?"

The reiatsu level in the room fluctuated greatly. Yamamoto ordered, "Both of you, keep quiet!" Ukitake and Zaraki spoke no more. "I will not tolerate any arguments about this matter during further meetings! Is that clear, Captains?"

"_Hai_."

"With that cleared, Captains, please return to your respective Divisions and think up of a suitable plan to rescue Hitsugaya-taichou from Hueco Mondo." Yamamoto banged his staff. "Dismissed!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

**Warning! Warning! An intruder has been spotted in the experiment room! An intruder –**

**PIANG!**

The foot that crushed the alarm system stepped back cautiously. The glass shards had sunken into the foot, but the owner of the foot didn't seem to care. He smiled sadistically, walking over the remaining glass shards. Luckily for him, the alarm didn't stir any of the Arrancar or the leaders of the army awake, so he was perfectly safe – and it was a perfect time for him to escape.

The figure teleported out of the building and ran. The full moon of Hueco Mondo shone down upon his slender figure running in the endless desert-like Hueco Mondo. He was wearing the standard shinigami shihakushou with a captain haori. A sword band was strapped to him and a zanpakutou lay attached to the sword band. The figure jumped across the land, happy to free at last. He smiled and looked back at Aizen's hideout.

"See?" the figure spoke, his voice sounding like as if he were talking behind a mask in a deep cave, albeit, echoing. "That's how you use my power, as well as your own. Now aren't you glad you let me out…" The figure smiled. "… Toushirou?"

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A/N: Yay, a cliffhanger.

In case you're wondering, that was sarcasm.

I hate cliffies! I wish I could write more, but I'm currently on medication so I'm feeling damn drowsy… Ugh… Sleepy…

I liked how this chapter turned out. Heck, I loved how all the other chapters turned out. I know you've got tons of questions, especially the last bit, but it'll all be explained in the next chapter which should be coming, like, tomorrow? Latest, Friday, I swear.


	5. 五　ご

Author's Note: This chapter took me a week to complete. Not exactly a week, though, it's more like over the week, so in total, it should have taken me about 8 hours to finish. This chapter's not that perfect and all, although I really like how it turned out.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 5 – The Great Escape! Back in Soul Society…

"So, you have decided to go there together, Captains?"

"_Hai, _soutaichou," Byakuya, Ukitake, Kyouraku and Soi Fong replied solemnly, bowing their heads to show respect.

Yamamoto nodded his head. "Understood. You may leave at any time."

"_Hai."_

"Remember, in the worst-case scenario, if Hitsugaya-taichou were to resist…" Yamamoto furrowed his brows in frustration and doubt. "Do everything in your power to force him back."

The Captains looked uneasily at each other but obliged anyway and shunpo-ed off immediately.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Koori, now controlling Hitsugaya's body, still wore that sneaky smile of his while dashing across the sandy lands. As he ran under the moonlight, his face and body could be seen much more clearly. He, being within Hitsugaya, had Hitsugaya's face and hair, except that Koori had sapphire blue eyes instead of Hitsugaya's emerald-turquoise eyes. He practically had Hitsugaya's stature, but he was taller. _**Much **_taller…

"I pity you, Toushirou," Koori mumbled under his breath. "I really pity you, because you can't be out here with me to enjoy the thrill in gaining control over someone. It's _**indescribable.**_" Seeing that neither Hitsugaya nor Hyourinmaru responded, Koori continued to mutter to Hitsugaya, "Remember what happened? _**You **_were the one who lost. _**You **_were the one who gave way. _**You **_were the one who let me out. And for that, I'm grateful, Toushirou, very very grateful…"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_The thing is, Toushirou…" Koori brought down the blade and screamed, "I DON'T KNOW!!!" As soon as the blade struck Hitsugaya, a white mist exuded from the impact on the snow quickly faded away. When it cleared, Koori's pupils dilated. He gasped, his hands trembling, causing the blade to clatter. "H-how… How can this be…? How can you… How can you still be standing?!"_

_The blade dug into Hitsugaya's arm and it bled. Blood trickled along the blade of Koori's zanpakutou and dripped onto the snow, tainting it red. Despite all that, Hitsugaya stood firmly and he gave Koori a nice but cold glare. "Your zanpakutou may look like Hyourinmaru,, but it's not." Hitsugaya used his other hand to grab the blade. "However, since you have no idea what you are, both you and your zanpakutou assume my appearance as well as Hyourinmaru's respectively, therefore…" Hitsugaya pulled the blade out of his arm and tossed it back to Koori. "Your zanpakutou can't hurt me physically."_

_Koori hissed at this and sheathed his zanpakutou. Later, he smirked. "You're just faking it, ain't you, Toushirou?"_

_Hitsugaya held his wound and stared at the blood. "…What are you talking about?"_

"_You've forgotten, Toushirou. I may not know what I am, but I sure as hell know that I'm you. Or at least, part of you. Therefore, I feel what you feel, Toushirou. And I feel a stinging pain in my arm right now." Koori smiled slyly. "By the way, I've also injured you with my zanpakutou just now, so there's no way you can trick me like that, but I must say, I'm impressed that you can still be standing so firmly."_

_Hitsugaya closed his eyes and concentrated on healing his wound. Ice formed on the wound, stopping the bleeding by clotting up the blood. Hitsugaya let go of his arm. "This is nothing compared to what Aizen did to Hinamori before."_

"_Aww, such sweet love…" Koori replied sarcastically, digging his ear with a bored look on his face. "Too bad I don't believe in love." He raised his arms and shit Shoukatsui continuously at Hitsugaya who tried to avoid the hadou, but after getting hit by some, his movement slowed, making him much more vulnerable to getting hit again. "What's the matter, Toushirou? Getting weaker already?" Koori switched to Byakurai and struck Hitsugaya right on the chest. Hitsugaya stumbled backwards and fell with a soft thud on the snow. Cringing in pain, he hissed. The snow was soft and comforting, yes, but at the same time, it was cold and numbing, even for the icy white-haired Captain. He struggled; struggled to get up, and struggled to pull himself together. However, the hadou had wounded him severely, maybe even crushed his bones, and Koori was holding him down with a bakudou. "It's all over, Toushirou," said Koori._

"_Chikushou…" Hitsugaya cursed, lying down on the snow, his breaths coming out in forms of white puffs._

"_Oh, and just so you know…" Koori smiled triumphantly, and gave an arrogant grunt. "While you were scampering around for your life, have you noticed that Hyou-Hyou ain't here to save you?"_

_Hitsugaya twitched a little, even though by right, he shouldn't have been able to. His once calm and cool eyes scanned the dreamscape of ice and snow. Hyourinmaru was nowhere to be found. Hitsugaya glared at Koori. "Where is Hyourinmaru?" he asked, trying to be as calm as possible._

_Koori threw back his head and laughed. He then faced Hitsugaya and gave a casual shrug. "You're the genius here, Toushirou. Not me. You should be able to figure it out yourself."_

"_Where is Hyourinmaru?!" Hitsugaya demanded, totally losing his cool._

"_What's wrong, Toushirou? Hah? Too much ice getting into your brain? Is it __**that **__hard to figure it out?"_

_Hitsugaya hissed over and over again, looking at Koori. He recalled what Ichigo had told him about his inner hollow before. That day, they somehow managed to start up a conversation without Hitsugaya having the need to demand the strawberry boy to call him 'taichou'. Ichigo had revealed how his inner hollow managed to make Zangetsu's spirit a part of him for him to control directly. Once Hitsugaya thought of that, the fear within him heightened. Could Hyourinmaru have…?_

"_Tch. So you finally figured it out, huh?" Koori's voice snapped Hitsugaya out of his trance.__"That's right. While you were scampering around aimlessly, I managed to force dear lil' Hyourinmaru to become part of me. Isn't that great?"_

_Hitsugaya gasped, due to both shock and the fact that Koori's rising reiatsu was totally engulfing and choking him. He knew it wouldn't be long before he himself succumbed to Koori's will as well. His vision blurred. He didn't even know whether it was because of the cold mist in the dreamscape of a blizzard or because of the fact that he was getting weak to the point of passing out at any moment. The last thing he saw was Koori's looming figure over him, a toothy grin on Koori's face._

"_It's about time you let me out, Toushirou. But don't you worry, I won't kill you. Yet."_

_Somehow, Koori's words soothed Hitsugaya instantly. His vision blurred even more. However, Hitsugaya felt totally at peace and actually felt that he could trust Koori. Koori's words suddenly sounded like random murmuring to his ears, and Koori's eyes became mesmerizing to Hitsugaya. Whatever Koori was doing to Hitsugaya, it sure as hell was weakening his will, like… __**hypnotism**_

"_Sleep tight, Toushirou. And don't resist me. I'm just doing you a favour…"_

_Then, nothing._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Koori continued running. His mouth – or rather, Hitsugaya's mouth – curled to a smile every now and then as he remembered what had taken place. Occasionally, Koori would turn to check of Aizen or any of the Arrancar was following him, but he wasn't worried about them at all, despite checking. It was more like he was expecting a fight, even if he managed to get Hitsugaya injured while doing so.

Koori combined a shunpo with a jump and covered a very long distance. He did it for a few more times before resting for a while and jumping again. A few hollows cowered in fear and became quite confused when a white and black blur would suddenly pass by before them. Koori, being the childish hollow he was, pulled a raspberry at them and continued jumping. It wouldn't be long till he was safe to get to Seireitei without a problem.

Out of the blue, Ichimaru and Tousen appeared before Koori, halting the mysterious inner hollow that had just taken over. Instead of cursing like what Hitsugaya Toushirou would do in such situations, Hitsugaya Koorimasu smiled rather sadistically. "This is going to be _**fun**_," Koori commented under his breath.

"Aizen-sama has been notified of your escape, Hitsugaya-kun. We have been ordered to take you back to him," Tousen stated rather simply.

"Like hell I would go back there and let Toushirou get toyed around like some kind of puppet," Koori retorted with a tiny hint of annoyance in his voice. He shunpo-jumped and kicked Tousen on his back, causing Tousen to fall on his face. Koori shunpo-jumped again and aimed for Ichimaru. Ichimaru got kicked right smack on the chest and fell on his back with a sickening thud.

"_A-ara ara… _Looks like it ain't really the chibi taichou in there, eh?" Ichimaru muttered out rather weakly. Although it was a mere kick, Ichimaru and Tousen had the rough treatment, and they were Aizen's right-hand men, for gawd's sake!

"Is it _**that **_obvious?" Koori laughed, jumping over the fallen Ichimaru and Tousen gracefully. "I'm a nice guy, you see, totally unlike Toushirou, so I'll give you guys another chance to duel with me if you have the strength to even stand right now."

"No, Aizen-sama told us specifically not to hurt you, even if you're not exactly yourself right now," Tousen explained solemnly.

Koori pouted with a childish glint in his eyes. "Psh, you're no fun, like I expected once I kicked your sorry asses. But," Koori smirked, staring at the fallen right-hand men. "I don't fall for such cheap illusions like these, Aizen Sousuke."

At once, Ichimaru and Tousen faded away, and out came the sadist, slowly sheathing Kyouka Suigetsu. He was very satisfied, as Koori could see from the familiar sadistic grin on Aizen's face. Aizen walked towards Koori and began, "So, you _**have **_noticed, after all."

Koori folded Hitsugaya's arms, getting very serious and mature all of a sudden. "Of course I've noticed. No matter how fast your lame subordinates are, even with shunpo, there's absolutely no way they can be faster than I am. Aizen, aren't you just too careless?" Koori explained. He narrowed his eyes. "And anyway, Toushirou has been tricked by you before since he has seen Kyouka Suigetsu's shikai. And as the saying goes, 'Once bitten, twice shy'. I won't let you control Toushirou like that ever again."

Instead of feeling surprised, Aizen felt amused. Really really amused to the point that he chuckled non-stop. "Very good! I am utterly and extraordinarily happy of my achievement. That's to be expected from you, Koori-chan. A wonderful speech indeed."

"Shut up, you bastard," Koori spat with hate. "You did nothing except cause pain and suffering for everyone."

"And you shall be my little prize at the end of this mindless game."

"Is that all you think of? Hah? That all of this is just a game to you? That Toushirou and I are but mere pawns?" Koori icily retorted, raising his reiatsu.

"But of course. The main reason I used the Hougyoku to awaken you is to convince you to join me."

Koori jumped and unsheathed Hyourinmaru. He pointed it towards Aizen. "Forget it, you bastard." The familiar ice blue dragon flowed from the tip of the blade and crashed onto the sandy grounds of Hueco Mondo. The water froze instantly, the ice creeping towards Aizen. Aizen jumped to avoid the rush of the icy cold water to prevent himself from getting frozen, but the water just rushed up towards him, like as if it were following his every movement. Aizen was quite shocked, but he kept his face neutral and shunpo-ed away in mid-air. The water still followed him, and managed to land a hit. Aizen's foot was caught in the ice, immobilizing his movements. Koori landed on the ground calmly.

Aizen was still smiling. "The ability to call upon a zanpakutou's shikai without the release command and the name of the zanpakutou, and the ability to control the path of the attack. Both are abilities completely desired by all: shinigami, vaizards, arrancar," Aizen muttered to himself, even though Koori could hear him clearly. Koori's eyes narrowed to slits while Aizen continued, "Truly the abilities gained only by you, and you alone, Koori-kun."

"Screw it with the sappy praises, Aizen," Koori brought Hyourinmaru to Aizen's neck, preparing to slice his head off at any point of time. "Now, prepare to _**die**_."

Just before Koori could push the blade to even land a cut on Aizen, an excruciating pain flowed throughout his entire being that came from his head. Koori's eyes dilated and were glowing in between sapphire and emerald. He brought his hand up and covered half of his face that was showing a very pained expression. Aizen smiled at this. Grabbing the chance, Aizen punched Koori in the stomach and Koori landed with a horrid thud. Hyourinmaru clanked as it dropped beside him. Koori hissed in pain, and his loss in concentration caused the ice on Aizen's foot to melt. Aizen got out and unsheathed Kyouka Suigetsu slowly. Step by step, he got closer and closer to the fallen Koori, a sadistic smile finding its way on his face.

_The hell are you __**doing**__?! You're going to get me killed!_

"Shut _**up**_, Toushirou…" Koori whispered under his breath. "I was fine till you came along and tried to gain back control."

_Don't screw with me!_

"Just shut up, Toushirou. Stop resisting and I'll get this over and done with!"

_You…!_

"What's up, Koori-kun?" Aizen asked, feeling very satisfied. "Is Toushirou-kun giving you any trouble there?"

_Any moment now, and he's going to kill us! And it'll be all your fault… If I die here… Who will protect Hinamori?!_

"That's precisely why…" Koori raised his reiatsu to match Aizen's, no, even greater than Aizen's, and sent Aizen plummeting to his knees. "I'm telling you…" In a split second, Koori was high up in the air, wielding Hyourinmaru like never before. The dragon appeared – no, make that _**two **_dragons – and came crashing down at the shocked Aizen. He tried to move, but Koori's reiatsu was too strong for him. And Aizen was shocked at this: Koori wasn't even unleashing all of his reiatsu, and yet, it was already strong enough to send him to his knees.

"…to shut up and let _**me **_handle this, Toushirou!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Did you hear that?"

Ukitake, Kyouraku and Soi Fong looked at the stoic Captain of the 6th Division. He was watching the exceptionally huge ice creeping from somewhere not far, and he could see the ice dragons crashing down to the surface, although it was quite faint from his distance. However, he was certain he heard a voice. A voice very familiar to all of them…

"It's Hitsugaya-taichou," Byakuya stated monotonously.

"Thank goodness he's alive," Ukitake breathed. Even Kyouraku was heaving a small sigh of relief. Only Soi Fong and Byakuya remained stoic. Ukitake blinked. "But it doesn't entirely sound like him…"

"Either way, we should hurry to him," Soi Fong muttered, shunpo-ing off. The other Captains silently followed. It wasn't far from where they were, and they were glad that they found a way to infiltrate Hueco Mondo successfully. After a few moments of shunpo, they finally reached their destination, and plain surprise could be seen from their expressions, even the cold stoic Kuchiki Byakuya was surprised.

Before them lay a frozen Aizen, and a panting figure that looked like Hitsugaya. He was holding onto the bloodied hilt of Hyourinmaru for support, leaning against it and kneeling on the ground. Hyourinmaru was stabbed through the ground with ice creeping from its blade going in all directions, freezing the ground. Snow began to fall silently. "All of that…" the Captains heard Hitsugaya's raspy voice pant. "…for nothing?"

Had he grown taller, was the question that immediately flashed through their minds when they saw him. It was true; Hitsugaya was the only shinigami, with the exception of substitute Kurosaki Ichigo, who carried his zanpakutou on his back due to the fact that he and Hyourinmaru were of the same height. Now, they could see that even though Hitsugaya was kneeling on the ground, he was at least a head taller than Hyourinmaru.

They heard the prodigy stop panting all of a sudden. To their surprise again, Hitsugaya fell to his sides, fainted. Ukitake was the first to rush to his white-haired friend's aid and carried Hitsugaya with his arms. Being the closest to him, Ukitake could hear the child-like Captain whispering inaudible words to no one in particular. He stood up and faced his fellow Captains. "We have to get him to the 4th Division immediately."

"And how about Sousuke?" Kyouraku enquired.

Hitsugaya's soft and tired voice spoke subconsciously, "L-leave… h-him…"

"What did he say, Ukitake-taichou?" Byakuya asked.

"He told us to leave Aizen as he is," Ukitake replied.

"Can we really trust him?" Soi Fong muttered under her breath. Kyouraku and Byakuya heard her anyway.

"We should just leave right now. Toushirou-kun needs Retsu-chan's medical aid," Kyouraku suggested. The Captains left Hueco Mondo instantly, carrying Hitsugaya with them. Before they left, the figure of Aizen stuck in the ice cage smiled and faded away, and Hitsugaya managed to force himself awake for that point of time to give the empty ice cage a death glare.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_What the hell were you doing out there?" Hitsugaya asked Koori, his arms stubbornly folded._

"_Nothing much," Koori replied with a shrug._

"_You call challenging Aizen __**nothing much**__?" Hitsugaya spat coldly, his temper rising._

"_Well, du-uh."_

"_How the hell can you say that?! If I had died out there, there'll be no one left to protect Hinamori! Think before you act, Koori! Have you even thought about that?!"_

"_I've already told you, Toushirou. I won't let you get killed," Koori edged closer to Hitsugaya. "Remember?"_

_Hitsugaya felt weak. His vision began to blur, but he struggled to stay awake. His steps became unsteady, but he tried to put on an indifferent front. "I don't want to."_

"_I can feel your uneasiness, Toushirou. You can't hide anything from yourself, after all."_

_Like before, Koori's words were soothing and comforting. Hitsugaya felt very relaxed, and very sleepy. He felt his eyelids getting heavier and heavier, and couldn't keep his eyes open. "I've been meaning to ask you… What the hell are you doing to me? You did this to me before… and knocked me out… It's happening again…"_

"_Hmph." Koori grabbed Hitsugaya by the collar. "You like it? It's hypnotism. Voice hypnotism, to be exact." Koori let go of Hitsugaya, letting Hitsugaya fall to the snowy grounds with a soft thud. Hitsugaya was still awake. Barely. "It's a little trick I learnt that allows me to take over you whenever I use it on you. It's hard to resist and hard to avoid. It's like Kyouka Suigetsu, except even cooler." Koori bent down and pulled up Hitsugaya's chin so that they could meet at eye level. "You have a nice long nap, Toushirou. But I assure you, I won't try anything funny this time. I just want you to relax…" Koori smirked. "Relax and go to sleep peacefully…"_

_At that instant, Hitsugaya fell into a deep slumber, his arms falling onto the snow. Koori whispered in Hitsugaya's ear, "Oh, and when you wake up, say hi to the old geezer for me, would you, Toushirou?" He knew Hitsugaya wouldn't reply and he took silence as a yes. Koori smiled triumphantly. "Thanks, Tou-chan. You're a great pal."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya's eyelids opened slowly, revealing two shining emerald orbs staring at the ceiling with a dazed expression. He groaned a little, rubbing his head. His muscles felt sore; it must've been from the battle Koori dealt with Aizen. His feet felt sore as well; it must've been from the endless shunpo Koori did in Hueco Mondo. Hitsugaya sighed in exhaustion. He hadn't even thought about attempting that much shunpo in just one night. How dare Koori mistreat his body like that!

Hitsugaya sat up and looked around. His vision got back into focus after a while, although he still felt dizzy from Koori's hypnotic voice spell. The place seemed very familiar to him, like he had been there for many times of his life as a captain. The walls were familiar, and so was the chair near the bed he was on. Come to think of it, the bed looked very familiar as well. Hitsugaya rubbed his head again, feeling a migraine coming up. He looked and stared. And it clicked.

He was at the 4th Division.

Hitsugaya blinked. "4th Division…?" He looked around once more to confirm his hypothesis, and was very relieved to know that he was away from Aizen and Hueco Mondo, and in the familiar hospital ward-like room of the 4th Division. Now he knew why it was so familiar; he always visited Hinamori in the 4th Division when she was still in her coma.

"Hinamori!" Hitsugaya tried to get off the bed when he remembered his childhood friend, but winced in pain as he held his stomach where Aizen kicked him. It still hurt, surprisingly. Hitsugaya sighed in defeat and lied back down on his bed. He was in no condition to be stubborn about seeing Hinamori then, let alone getting off the bed. "Che. Can't be helped then…" Hitsugaya muttered to himself disappointedly, and tried to get some sleep. At least, some rest before he would get called to the meeting hall. He was bound to go there sometime, and he was actually quite worried about the outcome already.

Of course, on the inside, he was glad. More glad than worried, at least.

Glad to be back in Seireitei.

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A/N: So… How is it? What do you think? I need comments! Please! _Arigatou!_


	6. 六　ろく

Author's Note: I know what I want to say now. First, I did a count for all the OCs appearing in this story, and I made a mistake earlier on. There are 9 OCs, not 5. I'll reveal all their names just in case: Hitsugaya Koorimasu, Kurayami Mezurashii Kage, Kurayami Merenaito Kanashii, Kurayami Meian Kaminari, Kurayami Yurei, Hitsugaya Arare, Hyousetsu Haruna, Kurayami Shinpi and Ankoku Yume. I'll reveal the meanings of some of the names at the end of the chapter, so don't worry if you don't know what the names mean.

Next, three of my OCs will be appearing in this chapter. They are known as the Kurayami sisters, mainly Kurayami Mezurashii Kage, Kurayami Merenaito Kanashii and Kurayami Meian Kaminari. If you're wondering why they have long names, it's because the 'k' names are their middle names and the 'm' names are their real names. Don't worry if you can't remember, because they'll only be referred to either one of their names. Confusing, yes, but it'll be revealed in this chapter.

Lastly, I have decided to make a trilogy out of this. This is the second of the trilogy. The first, aka the prequel to this story, will be published once one of my other major fics is completed. Besides, if I post the prequel, it might give away some clues to solving the mystery in this story, so you'll have to wait for a little while longer for the prequel.

Now, enjoy chapter 6!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 6 - The New Captains of the Gotei 13 and Hitsugaya's Sentence!

Hitsugaya's eyes opened slowly. His vision was clearer than before, but he still couldn't see properly. He hadn't even realized that he had fallen asleep. His eyes caught someone's figure, but he couldn't really see very clearly. He blinked and his vision cleared. Though it was still pretty blur, he managed to recognize who was by his bed. Hinamori noticed that Hitsugaya had woken up, and smiled. "Hitsugaya-kun, _ohayou_! You're finally awake!"

Hitsugaya blinked, not knowing how to react. The fact that Hinamori was there still hadn't clicked into his mind yet. Finally, his brain registered what was going on, and he immediately sat up in surprise. "Hina-?" He was cut off by an excruciating pain from his stomach and held it, wincing. He removed his hand and all he saw was blood.

"Hitsugaya-kun! You shouldn't move around like that! Look, your stitches opened again!" Hinamori scolded. She got up from her seat and rushed to find Unohana to treat Hitsugaya's re-opened wounds.

Hitsugaya hissed in pain and struggled to lie back down on the bed. "Well… It didn't happen just now…" he mumbled to himself. He blinked twice in rapid motion in realization. "Hinamori… said 'again'. Does that mean that they opened before?"

After a while, he noticed a worried Hinamori returning with a smiling Unohana who immediately went to Hitsugaya's side and bandaged his wounds up after removing the blood-stained bandages. Unohana disinfected the wounds before doing so, and told Hitsugaya not to move around as his stitches might open again if he did so. Hitsugaya reluctantly assured her that he wouldn't. After all, since he was back in Soul Society, Hitsugaya, being Hitsugaya, would most definitely want to go back to his division to complete all the paperwork. He still couldn't trust Matsumoto with the workload. Unfortunately, he had to be hospitalized so paperwork would have to wait. Sighing, Hitsugaya looked at Unohana and thanked her for all the trouble. Unohana smiled.

"Oh yes, before I forget," Unohana spoke gently. "After Ukitake-taichou, Kyouraku-taichou, Kuchiki-taichou and Soi Fong-taichou brought you back here, Yamamoto-soutaichou called for a captain's meeting to discuss about your…" she paused and the smile faded. Hitsugaya looked down, letting his hair cover his eyes. He knew exactly what she was talking about.

There was no need for her to carry on with her sentence. Hitsugaya then asked, "So… What did he say?"

Unohana replied, "Yamamoto-soutaichou said that there'll be another captain's meeting and he wants you to be present."

Hitsugaya was dreading this moment. Hinamori looked away. "When?" he asked.

"Tonight."

Hitsugaya became surprised. He thought that the captain's meeting would be a whole lot sooner, but it wasn't. He decided to keep his questions for later, so he replied with a nod, "All right. I understand."

"Take care, Hitsugaya-taichou," Unohana finished with a smile and left the room, closing the door as she walked out.

Hinamori went back to her seat and hugged Hitsugaya. Hitsugaya's eyes widened as he was stunned since he hadn't expected Hinamori to hug him just like that. "Hinamori, what are you…?"

He felt his shoulder getting wet after a while. He realized that Hinamori was crying while hugging him. It pained him to see her cry, especially when she was crying on his shoulder. Hitsugaya asked no further and waited for Hinamori to speak instead. Hearing a few whimpers every now and then, Hitsugaya waited patiently and temporarily allowed himself to be her source of comfort. Hinamori finally spoke, "I was so worried… Shirou-chan…"

Normally, Hitsugaya would twitch or have some kind of strong reaction when Hinamori used that nickname, but he made an exception and let her continue. "When you got taken away… sniff… I thought I'd never see you again… I was so scared, Shirou-chan… I was so scared…" Hitsugaya smiled just a little and hugged her back. He needed to assure her that everything was all right, even if things wouldn't be in the future. Hinamori continued crying. "Shirou-chan, promise me… Promise me that you won't ever leave me. Because… I'm scared that if you leave me… You'll… You'll become like Aizen…" Hitsugaya tensed up. Whenever he heard that bastard's name, he would get seriously pissed. However, he remained indifferent on the outside. "Promise, Shirou-chan?"

Hitsugaya felt at ease. His hug tightened. "I promise, Momo," Hitsugaya promised, using Hinamori's name for once. "I promise."

They had remained in that hugging position for a few hours. Hitsugaya didn't feel uncomfortable or numb while in that position, and neither did Hinamori, but she began to calm down. Her tears stopped flowing and she stopped sniffing. She let go of Hitsugaya who noticed the usual warm smile on her face. Hitsugaya then smiled in return. "_Arigatou, _Hitsugaya-kun," Hinamori thanked.

"It was nothing, Hinamori," the white-haired captain replied with a small contented sigh. "However, there's one thing I don't understand, Hinamori."

"Eh?"

"How did Yamamoto-soutaichou know about… you know, the problem with me?"

Hinamori hesitated. She wriggled her fingers, feeling rather nervous about telling Hitsugaya. She mustered up the courage and said, "You… transformed just now."

Hitsugaya's emerald orbs dilated and his eyes widened. He gasped a little, getting a little afraid that he might've hurt someone. "Wha…What happened, Hinamori?"

Hinamori saw the worry – and… fear? – in Hitsugaya's eyes. Being Hitsugaya's childhood friend, Hinamori knew Hitsugaya like the back of her hand, especially when it came to his emotions. "Don't worry, Hitsugaya-kun, you didn't hurt anyone," Hinamori assured, letting Hitsugaya heave a sigh of relief. "But…" Hinamori paused, and stopped to think. Should she really tell him? Or should she let him find out when he noticed something wrong with his outfit?

"But what?" Hitsugaya became scared again. Scared that he had really injured Hinamori and that she was just reassuring him that he didn't do anything bad to her.

"Hitsugaya-kun, do you feel anything… _**cold**_? Like, on your clothes or something?"

"Cold?" Hitsugaya touched his chest area and felt something extraordinarily numbing. His fingers twitched and he removed his hand, only to find small ice particles on them. He brushed them off and realized that he had a minor case of frostbite when his fingers didn't move when he wanted them to and when he felt like as if his fingers weren't even there on his hand. What was going on? Hitsugaya dug into his shihakushou and grabbed something that was of the exact coldness. He took it out slowly, hoping that it wasn't what he was expecting it to be. However, it was.

"It formed when you were asleep and at that time, Yamamoto-soutaichou was present, so…" Hinamori felt that she need not explain any further.

Hitsugaya gripped onto the thin, slightly translucent hollow-like mask that was made of ice. He tried to break it into two with his bare hands, but not even a scratch formed on the mask. Sighing in defeat, Hitsugaya put the mask back into his shihakushou and lied back down on the bed. "How did it form, Hinamori?"

Hinamori was on the brink of tears as she had not expected him to react so calmly, and because she didn't want it to be true. "I saw the ice starting to cover your face and wanted to take it off, but Yamamoto-soutaichou took it off instead. It didn't break because the ice wasn't stuck onto you so all Yamamoto-soutaichou did was slide it off and…"

"I understand."

She moved closer to him, her worried look becoming even more worried than before. "Hitsugaya-kun, what happened? How did you become a vaizard?"

Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed to slits as he recalled what Aizen had showed and told him in Hueco Mondo. He didn't want Hinamori to know exactly what Aizen said, for fear she might not be able to understand what was going on. "I don't know," was all Hitsugaya told her, and he kept quiet since then. Both of them did, until it was time for the awaited captain's meeting.

Hitsugaya knew that it wasn't going to end well.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Hitsugaya Toushirou, taichou of the 10th Division, was kidnapped and taken to Hueco Mondo last week," Yamamoto began the meeting. "It was only last night when four of our captains – 2nd Division's Soi Fong-taichou, 6th Division's Kuchiki-taichou, 8th Division's Kyouraku-taichou and 13th Division's Ukitake-taichou – managed to break into Hueco Mondo and bring him back to Soul Society. For that, we _**should **_be happy. However…"

Hitsugaya, not wearing his haori, stood in the middle of the meeting hall with narrowed eyes. He was afraid things would turn out like this. He couldn't bear being stared at by some of the captains present, mainly the freaky Mayuri and insane Zaraki, but he had no choice. Ukitake, Unohana and Kyouraku occasionally glanced at him concernedly, while Byakuya appeared cold and uncaring, as always. Soi Fong didn't really care. Komamura wasn't present as he had fallen seriously ill, which was weird since Ukitake was usually the sickly one. Still, Hitsugaya felt like he was going to be damned. What's worse was that Hyourinmaru, who was usually his comfort zone, had already been taken over by Koori, and Hitsugaya was _**not **_going to be comforted by someone he hated.

"While Hitsugaya-taichou was recuperating in the 4th Division, I paid him a visit," Yamamoto continued. "I saw an ice mask appearing on his face, and it resembled a hollow's mask. I immediately took it off." Yamamoto opened his serious eyes. "You know what that means, captains. Especially you, Hitsugaya-taichou." Hitsugaya didn't say anything in his defense. "That is why I have called this meeting. However, I will put that aside for now. I have another strong reason as to why I called for this meeting. At night," Yamamoto added.

"I disagree," Zaraki intercepted. "I feel that we should take care of the little brat's problem before we move on to the 'strong reason' you have."

"Oh? And why is that so, Kenpachi?" Kyouraku challenged.

"For your information, Kyouraku, I believe that the solution to the brat's problem should be first decided by us captains. If we are to move on to the next problem, then what're we going to do with the brat?"

Hitsugaya refrained himself from twitching excessively for being called a brat. Moreover, Zaraki's reasoning sounded illogical. Weren't all problems solved by captains? If Yamamoto had another problem that seemed to be much greater and serious than him becoming a vaizard illegally, shouldn't they solve that problem before solving his?

As if Yamamoto had read his mind, he said, "Hitsugaya-taichou's problem shall be solved later, Zaraki-taichou. After all, I will need opinions from all the captains of the Gotei 13, other than Komamura-taichou's as he is not present."

"_**All **_the captains of the Gotei _**13**_?" Zaraki emphasized. "Hello? Three out of the thirteen are defected. How can you still call it the Gotei 13? I've been thinking about it for quite some time already, old man!" Zaraki shouted rudely.

The reiatsu level seemed to have fluctuated, even just a little. Yamamoto spoke seriously, "That is my point. I have searched for replacements for former taichous Ichimaru Gin of the 3rd Division, Aizen Sousuke of the 5th Division and Tousen Kaname of the 9th Division, but I couldn't find any. Until now, that is."

"_Nani? _Are you saying that you've found replacement captains for the 3rd, 5th and 9th Divisions?!" Ukitake spoke, surprised. Yamamoto's news surprised all the captains present, anyway, even Hitsugaya himself was surprised.

"Yes, I have. That is the other reason why I called for the meeting."

"But there are only three ways for shinigami to be captain," Byakuya spoke this time. "The first way is to pass the captain's proficiency test and perform their zanpakutou's bankai. It has to be witnessed by at least three captains, including you, soutaichou. I doubt any of us present have witnessed your chosen captains' bankais."

"The second is for personal recommendations from at least six of us and approval from 3 of the remaining seven. We have no personal recommendations, and you have yet asked us for approval, soutaichou," Unohana added, trying to be as polite as possible.

"And the third is to defeat the current captain with at least 200 witnesses from the division itself, which was how _**I **_became captain!" Zaraki boasted. "Since the defected captains obviously not dead, how can those you chose become captain?"

"Soutaichou, the three you found have not used any of the said three ways to become captain. We captains have every right to reject the idea of having the three as the newly-appointed captains, except for Hitsugaya-taichou," Soi Fong quickly added.

"Are you defying my orders?" Yamamoto challenged. "I, the commander-general, have every right to appoint the three I have found as the new captains. This is because I have decided on the fourth way to become captain."

"The fourth way? You never told us about that!" Zaraki shouted.

Yamamoto ignored him. "The fourth way is to obtain bankai at a young age." Hitsugaya looked up at Yamamoto, shock clearly written all over his face. "There is no need for the candidate to showcase their bankai, and there is no need for captains to witness the bankai if the candidate chooses to showcase it. All it takes is to obtain bankai at a young age, and my requirement will be when the candidate is still studying in Shinigami Academy." (A/N: I made that up.)

"What the hell?! Are you daft, old man?!" Zaraki argued, getting seriously pissed off. "Are you saying that you chose three screwed up kiddies who haven't even graduated from the academy?! Now, that ain't fair! Don't tell me that the little brat over here became captain through the same way too!" Zaraki shouted, pointing his nameless zanpakutou towards Hitsugaya who was glaring at the 11th Division taichou.

"No. Yamamoto-soutaichou, Kyouraku-taichou and I have witnessed Hitsugaya-taichou's bankai. He did not become captain through this new way Yamamoto-soutaichou has introduced," Ukitake spoke as-a-matter-of-factly.

"And I am not daft, Zaraki-taichou," Yamamoto added, his reiatsu rising just a little. "I believe that what I am doing is the right thing."

"Would you allow me to carry out experiments with them, soutaichou?" Mayuri asked boldly, crossing his fingers behind his back. He was obviously not satisfied with just Quincys anymore, especially since Ishida managed to escape him before. He wanted new test subjects, and if the candidates had really obtained bankai while studying at the academy, they must've had an extraordinarily high reiatsu that was beckoning him to study on.

"No, Kurotsuchi-taichou. In fact, I have already ordered restraining orders on you."

"What?!"

"You are not to go beyond 100 meters within their radius, is that clear?"

"O-o-one hundred meters?! Soutaichou…!" Mayuri whined.

Ignoring the 12th Division captain's whining, Yamamoto looked at Hitsugaya in the eye which caused Hitsugaya to flinch in fear. Of course, even though Hitsugaya was a captain, he was still pretty much afraid of the old captain's reiatsu. Yamamoto spoke, mostly to Hitsugaya, "Hitsugaya-taichou, I believe you know the newly-appointed captains from your childhood." Hitsugaya's eyes widened, and he choked back a gasp. His hands began to tremble, and he was beginning to sweat profusely. These signs did not go unnoticed by the other captains who became slightly confused, even Byakuya was confused. "Summon the new captains in," Yamamoto spoke at a loud voice so that the shinigami guards outside could hear him.

A soft, but firm female voice whispered loudly, "No need, Yama-jii."

"Who was-?" Ukitake looked around frantically, hoping to find someone but he only saw the familiar faces of the captains and Yamamoto. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, tried to control his breathing rate. (A/N: Do shinigami breathe? O.o Never mind) He then fell to his knees.

"Hee hee, looks like the older Shirou-chan can't see us, nee-chan!" a bubbly, young voice giggled.

"Hmph, reminds me of Yachiru," Zaraki mumbled to himself. Hitsugaya was shaking uncontrollably, like as if he was reliving a terrible moment in his life.

"Hitsugaya-taichou!" Ukitake shouted out concernedly. "Are you all right?" he asked when he rushed to Hitsugaya's aid and bent down to reach his height. Ukitake put a concerned hand on Hitsugaya's shoulder in attempt to calm the young taichou down.

"Please, just take me away from here, Ukitake-taichou," Hitsugaya begged, tears forming in his eyes.

"Hitsugaya-taichou…" Ukitake couldn't believe it. The great prodigal child Hitsugaya Toushirou was shedding tears, and he didn't know the reason why Hitsugaya was acting this way. He didn't want to know why.

"_Onegai, _Ukitake Jyuushirou-taichou…" Hitsugaya begged once more, his voice barely above a whisper. Ukitake didn't know how to react. Everyone in the room was shocked to see the white-haired taichou break like that, and even call Ukitake by his full name. Ukitake looked away sadly. He didn't know what to do. Heck, he didn't even know what was going on, exactly. Hitsugaya whispered once more, "I've heard two voices already." Hitsugaya closed his eyes and braced himself. He was shaking very terribly. "Don't make me hear the third one!"

"Damn, is this _**the **_Hitsugaya Toushirou I see? Why the hell are you breaking down like a baby, Toushirou?!" a strong, boyish but female voice shouted. "I know you better than this, _**Tou-chan!**_"

Hitsugaya's eyes widened to the point when his pupils could barely be seen. His pride and dignity no longer mattered to him. All he could think of was to get away from all of this shit and cry like as if the end of the world had arrived for him. He blinked, trying to regain his composure, but he was still shaking. Ukitake supported him, but he didn't want to stand up. Suddenly, before him, three unidentified shadows popped out from nowhere and gathered in front of him. At the same time, the moon that night shone into the meeting hall through a window, shining light upon the shadows, revealing their faces. Hitsugaya gasped and felt his head throbbing. He passed out instantly.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hi," a young Hitsugaya greeted the girl with shoulder-length jet black hair and golden eyes. The girl looked up from her book shyly and smiled a little, even though it was like as if she had forced the smile. The girl inserted a bookmark in between the pages before she looked up at Hitsugaya, still smiling. She seemed happy that someone had noticed her and talked to her._

"_H-hi…" she replied extremely shyly._

"_Do I know you? You look really familiar…" Hitsugaya asked, putting a finger to his chin, thinking. "Oh, I remember now! You're Kage's sister, aren't you?"_

_The girl looked surprised. "Y-yeah…" She closed her book and put it away. "You know my sister?"_

"_Yeah, we're in the same class, so…"_

_She arched an eyebrow. "You're in the same class as Kage? You mean Advanced Class 1?" (A/N: I made that up too.)_

"_Yeah. So?"_

"_You must be Tou-chan, am I right?" Hitsugaya twitched. The girl giggled again. "Sorry, I shouldn't tease you like that. You must be Hitsugaya Toushirou. It's a pleasure to meet Kage's classmate."_

"_Well, glad to meet Kage's older sister." Hitsugaya smirked a little. "So, what's your name?"_

"_Kurayami Merenaito Kanashii. But, you can just call me Merenaito."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_The teacher walked into the classroom with a young girl trailing behind him. Young Advanced Class student Hitsugaya stared at the strange boy-like girl. __She looked like as if the entire world betrayed her, like as if she was going to pounce on anyone and beat the crap out of them. Long story short, the short jet black-haired girl with diamond-like eyes looked pissed. Her arms were folded and she wasn't even looking at the teacher in the eye. How disrespectful._

"_All right, class. This is your new classmate. Her name is Kurayami Mezurashii Kage. I hope you can all be fellow shinigami even after you graduate," the teacher introduced. "Now, Mezurashii, why don't you-?"_

"_Kage," the girl replied, or more like scoffed._

"_What?"_

"_Kage. The name's Kage. Mezurashii sounds too long for me."_

_The teacher sweat dropped anime style and chuckled a fake laugh. "Ha ha, oookay… So, um, Mezu – I mean, __**Kage**__, why don't you take a seat over there?" He suggested, pointing over to the empty seat right next to Hitsugaya. Hitsugaya twitched. He would __**not **__enjoy the accompaniment of a rude, disrespectful, pissed off girl. "Right next to Toushirou-kun."_

_Kage__'s eyes dazzled with interest when she laid her eyes on the white-haired boy. "Toushirou-kun, huh?" She faded away, bringing shock to everyone's faces. She reappeared next to Hitsugaya, seated nicely in her seat. Her smile gave Hitsugaya the creeps. "He looks more like a Tou-chan to me."_

_Hitsugaya got damn pissed. It was bad enough with Hinamori calling him Shirou-chan; now he had another annoying girl__'s name-calling to handle? "What did you just call me?"_

"_Tou-chan, that's what. It seems to suit you, __**Tou-chan**__. If you don't like it, why don't I change your name to Toushirou-__**chan**__?"_

_Hitsugaya twitched uncontrollably. Yup, he was definitely not going to enjoy this._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Hitsugaya __stretched his arms out lazily and yawned. He walked along the corridor, not expecting much from a normal every day break time. He then heard someone's screaming which completely made him cover his ears and flinch. "OUTTA THE WAY, CHIBI!"_

_Hitsugaya__'s patience broke. "WHO THE HELL WERE YOU CALLING-?"_

_**POW!**_

_A__ tiny figure of a young girl whose jet black hair was tied up in two cute ponytails and opal blue eyes fell on his body, causing him to stumble backwards and fall on his back. The dust cleared, and the girl punched Hitsugaya in the face. "Damn you! I told you to get out of the way! Now look what you've done!"_

_Hitsugaya coughed. "What __**I've **__done? You freakin' fell on top of me, you baka! And who were you calling chibi?! Aren't you a little midget yourself?"_

_The girl screamed, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! I am most definitely NOT! It's only because I haven't matured yet! Unlike my older sisters!" She then pouted and folded her arms. She looked at Hitsugaya in the eye. "What's your name, midget?"_

"_It's NOT midget, you midget!"_

"_I ASKED FOR YOUR DAMN NAME, NOT FOR YOUR OPINION!!!"_

"_NO NEED TO SHOUT!"_

"_YOU'RE SHOUTING TOO!!!!"_

_Hitsugaya and the girl shot death glares at each other. One could feel the tension building up between them. Hitsugaya sighed and spoke calmly, "Fine. It's Hitsugaya Toushirou."_

"_Eh? Toushirou? What kinda name is that? It sounds like Kage-neesan's friend Tou-chan."_

"_Kage?" Hitsugaya felt twitchy._

"_Yeah. You know her? I'm currently escaping her death wrath. At least before she uses her favourite kidou on me…"_

"_MEIAN!! Where the (beep) ARE you, you… you LIAR!!! Give me back Kurokage OR ELSE!!!" Kage's screams could be heard throughout the entire academy. Some teachers even tried to calm her down and help look for Meian, the girl with Hitsugaya, but they ended up getting punched in the face by a really pissed off Kage._

"_Oopsie. I gotta go now, Tou-Tou!" Meian teased, giggling. She jumped off Hitsugaya and ran off._

"_Oi! Wait! What's your name? Meian?"_

_Meian stopped and turned to face Hitsugaya. "__Yup! That's my name, all right! Kurayami Meian Kaminari! But I prefer being called Meian!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Where… Where am I?" Hitsugaya asked to no one in particular. His eyes opened to see the familiar icy dreamscape as before. He jumped to his feet and looked around. "Merenaito… Kage… Meian… Why am I suddenly remembering them now…?"_

"_Ain't it obvious, Toushirou?" Hitsugaya heard Koori's familiar voice sneer at him. Hitsugaya turned and Koori jumped down in front of him from nowhere. Koori stood up properly and looked at Hitsugaya in the eye. "When you heard their voices while you were awake and saw them, the memories you tried to lock away in your mind began to unlock themselves, thus allowing you to remember them."_

"_So, meeting them was the trigger?"_

"_Du-uh. What else could be the trigger? And anyway, Toushirou, you're not even supposed to wake up in here. By right, when you wake up from a series of dreams, you should be back in reality by now, but you're stuck in this dreamland of ice and snow instead. I pity you, having to experience so many nightmares within just one week."_

_Hitsugaya ignored Koori's last cocky comment and asked, "So am I supposed to wake up now?"_

_Koori shrugged. "I suppose so. The old bastardy geezer is trying to decide on your sentence. You'd better wake up now or else you'll miss out on everything."_

_Hitsugaya arched an eyebrow suspiciously. "You're not trying anything funny, are you, Koori?" Hitsugaya asked, folding his arms._

"_Nah. Not right now. Ain't in the mood."_

_Hitsugaya blinked. Inner hollows actually have the mood to take over? "Well… Thanks for your time, anyway."_

_Koori flushed a little and looked away. "W-whatever."_

_And before Hitsugaya knew it, e__verything became black._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Emerald eyes opened slowly, looking up at the familiar face of Ukitake. Hitsugaya blinked and rolled his eyes around to check his surroundings. He was still at the meeting hall, and everyone was staring at him. Hitsugaya sat up. "Are you awake, Hitsugaya-taichou?" Ukitake asked.

"A-ah…" Hitsugaya replied, looking around. The girls he had expected to see weren't there. In fact, he couldn't find them anywhere. '_Was it all…just a dream…?_'

"Of course it wasn't a dream, Toushirou!" Kage's voice rang throughout the halls. Hitsugaya turned to his right only to be greeted by Kage's fist. The loud tight smack could be heard echoing throughout the halls, triggering fits of stifled laughter from a few captains.

"What the heck do you think you're doing, Kage?!" Hitsugaya shouted, holding his swollen cheek.

"Smacking you to your senses, that's what!"

"There wasn't any need to hit me that hard, dammit!"

"Well, you looked like you needed a good spanking, so there!"

"You haven't changed at all, Kage!"

"You haven't changed at all yourself, Toushirou-_**chan**_!"

As the childish twosome continued arguing, Merenaito and Meian appeared next to Kyouraku, shocking the flamboyantly dressed taichou. Meian was giggling non-stop, while Merenaito was sighing away.

Kage's hair was no longer as short as it was in the past, obviously. It had become shoulder-length, and she had some of her hair tied up in a short and small ponytail. The rest of the hair was let down. Merenaito had long, silky hair, and it no longer covered her crescent moon-shaped birthmark on her neck. Meian didn't tie her hair up in two ponytails. Instead, she only tied one.

Merenaito went up to Kyouraku and requested, "Ne, Shunsui-kun, may I borrow that?" Merenaito pointed to the straw hat Kyouraku was wearing. Kyouraku, being Kyouraku, couldn't say no to a girl, and willingly lent his hat to Merenaito. "_Arigatou,_" Merenaito thanked and walked slowly towards the arguing Kage and Hitsugaya. "Kage. Toushi."

"_Nani, _Merenaito?!" both replied angrily, turning their faces towards Merenaito's direction. The straw hat immediately met them face-to-face, literally, and Kage and Hitsugaya fell on their backs, the straw hat covering their faces. Merenaito dusted her hands and picked up the straw hat, returning it to Kyouraku.

"Why the hell did you do that, Merenaito?!" Hitsugaya complained, rubbing his face. Kage sat up, rubbing her face as well.

"Because you two were acting like a bunch of idiots."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

After that embarrassing scene, Hitsugaya resumed his position in the middle of the meeting hall. Merenaito, Kage and Meian stood behind him in one straight line. The rest of the captains were in their original position and Yamamoto cleared his throat. "Now that you have met Kage-taichou, Merenaito-taichou and Meian-taichou…" Yamamoto began. "It's time to decide on Hitsugaya-taichou's sentence." Hitsugaya clenched his fists in awful dread. "Any suggestions?"

"Sir, I propose that Hitsugaya-taichou be banished to the material world with the other vaizards and become an outcast, just like them," Soi Fong suggested. Hitsugaya remained indifferent. He was expecting that suggestion to pop up.

"No, I disagree. I propose that he stays here and train up to control the inner hollow," Ukitake suggested, with Kyouraku supporting him.

"No! The results will be disastrous! You don't know what he can do with that amount of reiatsu," Mayuri argued. He smiled slyly. "Unless, of course, you hand him over to me and I shall study him…"

"Kurotsuchi-taichou, may I remind you of the restraining orders?" Yamamoto demanded. Mayuri kept quiet. "Now, any more suggestions? If not, you may begin casting your votes."

Byakuya stepped forward. "I agree with Soi Fong-taichou."

Unohana stepped forward next. "I agree with Ukitake-taichou."

"Bah, I don't really care what happens to the brat," Zaraki muttered, but stepped forward anyway. "But he'll die with Mayuri, won't he?"

"Oh goodie, a supporter!" Mayuri cheered.

"The score," Yamamoto ignored Mayuri again. "is 2:3:2. To ensure fairness, Kage-taichou, Merenaito-taichou, Meian-taichou, please cast your votes."

Merenaito, Kage and Meian looked at each other, neither of them stepping forward. Hitsugaya glanced at them behind him, a little bit nervous about his fate. Then, the Kurayami sisters smiled sweetly. "Ne, Yama-jii, may we suggest something even better?" Meian asked childishly.

"Hmm? Go ahead, Meian-taichou. Speak."

"Actually, my sisters and I have already decided on this just now. We decided…"

"…that Hitsugaya-taichou should be _**temporarily **_banished to the material world…" Kage continued.

"…and gain control over his inner hollow before he can return to Seireitei," Merenaito finished for her sisters. "This would ensure that Hitsugaya-taichou gains control over his inner hollow and in turn, makes good use of the powers to aid in the upcoming winter war against Aizen."

"That way, you won't ever have to worry about losing yet another valuable captain to the enemy," Meian spoke.

"If you have any worries, you may send some shinigami to accompany him to the material world. Substitute Kurosaki Ichigo is in the material world though, and is a vaizard himself, so shouldn't he know what's best for Hitsugaya-_**taichou**_?" Kage added, teasing Hitsugaya a little, earning herself a glare from the icy captain.

"Hmm… That is a feasible idea…" Yamamoto pondered. The rest of the captains fell silent. Yamamoto was actually agreeing with the newbies! He wasn't even supporting his own ex-students' idea. Yamamoto banged his staff. "It is decided, then. Hitsugaya Toushirou."

"_Hai_," Hitsugaya responded.

"You are thereby temporarily banished to the material world to learn how to control the hollow within you. Go with Kage-taichou, Merenaito-taichou, Meian-taichou, Hinamori-fukutaichou, Abarai-fukutaichou and Kuchiki Rukia. Although we are already short-handed, I am confident that the shinigami named are needed more with you in the material world. Find Kurosaki Ichigo and seek help. Until you learn how to control the hollow within you, you are not allowed to have any contact with Soul Society, not even through the ones going with you. Is that clear?"

"_Hai_."

"Done. You are to leave tomorrow morning." Yamamoto banged his staff. "Dismissed!"

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A/N: Pant… pant… Wow, that took me a LOOONG time to finish…

Ok, meanings of OC names. You should know what Hitsugaya Koorimasu means by now. Let me elaborate more on the others, then. Kurayami Mezurashii Kage: Kurayami means darkness, Mezurashii means unusual or rare and kage means shadow. Kurayami Merenaito Kanashii: Merenaito is katakana for melanite, which is a black gem, and Kanashii means sadness or sorrow. Kurayami Meian Kaminari: meian means the light and the shadow, and Kaminari means thunder.

I'll be adding more translations as more OCs appear in further into the story, so again, don't worry if you don't know what the names mean. It's ok if you ask me. I don't mind.

Now, please review! Tell me what you think about this chapter! _Onegaishimasu _and _arigatou_!


	7. 七　しち　OR 　なな

Author's Note: Thank you so much for all the reviews! Sincerely, thank you! Please continue reading and reviewing. If you don't want to review but put this story under alert or favorites anyway, I don't mind at all, because it shows that you read and appreciate my story. Sincerely, all I want to say is thank you to everyone who reviewed and/or put this under alerts/favorites!

There is a tiny tiny tiny reference to Fullmetal Alchemist, but don't worry. It doesn't really affect much so don't worry if you don't know what it is. It's the clapping scene with Kage. It acts in the same way as Edward, Hohenheim (sp?) and Izumi clap their hands to perform alchemy without the use of a transmutation circle, except that Kage claps her hands to open the senkaimon which other kidou users can't do. That's all there is to it.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 7 – Aizen Strikes! Arrival in the Material World

The sky was purple with shades of pink here and there. There wasn't a cloud in sight, and the sun was beginning to rise. It was nearing dawn. The time had come for Hitsugaya and a group of accompanying shinigami to leave for the material world.

There was nothing to pack for all of them. Hitsugaya was no longer deemed captain and need not bring the mobile phone for he was not to have any contact with Soul Society while being in the material world. He was only given a soul candy dispenser. As he was not captain temporarily, he would also not have a limit placed on him, even though with his level of reiatsu, he could easily influence the surroundings. Yamamoto decided to keep the reason to himself. No one bothered to ask why.

Renji and Rukia practically had everything they needed in the material world, with Urahara and Ichigo respectively, although they, along with Hinamori, were given a mobile phone and soul candy dispenser each. The Kurayami sisters were also given a mobile phone and soul candy dispenser each, along with three kikanshinki, aka the item used for memory replacement.

All of them had specially-prepared gigai for the material world. It seemed that they were going to be staying there for a long time since they needed gigai. Everyone was still sound asleep when they prepared to leave, save for some shinigami on sentry duty. The group made their way to the heart of Seireitei, with Hitsugaya walking in the middle being escorted like a criminal, not wearing his captain haori. Captaincy was temporarily handed over to Matsumoto, and she had the responsibility of both a taichou and fukutaichou now. Hitsugaya could only hope that his division would be able to pull through without him. After all, no one is indispensable, including him.

"Well, here we go," Renji muttered. "Wonder if we'll have to go to school with Ichigo… Damn, I can't have it with everyone staring at my hair…"

"Leave the human stuff till later, Renji. We have to wait for the representative of the Kidou Corps to come and open the senkaimon for us," Rukia said, trying to shut Renji up.

"No need to wait," Kage spoke, her voice becoming soft and slightly frail. "I can do it."

"Are you sure, Kurayami-taichou?" Hinamori asked.

"Look, there are three of us Kurayami sisters. If you refer to any of us as Kurayami-taichou, we won't know who you're talking to," Merenaito explained, her voice soft and slightly weak as well. "Just call us by our first names with the taichou like what everyone else does."

"_H-hai, _Merenaito-taichou," Hinamori replied, bowing in respect.

"Kage, Merenaito, Meian," Hitsugaya spoke this time, his voice not as firm as it usually was, but still strong. "It's acting up again, isn't it?"

Kage looked away with a frown. Merenaito just continued staring at everyone with a pretty cold and distant stare. Meian blinked. Three of them sighed an answer, "Yes."

"What's acting up again, Hitsugaya-kun?" Hinamori asked concernedly, noticing that the Kurayami sisters were getting a bit pale.

Hitsugaya did no attempt to correct her for calling him 'kun'. "An ailment the sisters share," Hitsugaya said and left it at that. He knew that the threesome did not want anyone to know about their 'ailment'. Before anyone replied, Hitsugaya quickly added, "Kage, are you sure you can open the senkaimon even though your ailment is acting up again?"

"Positive," Kage's reply came simply.

"We should wait for the representative of the Kidou Corps to come, shouldn't we? I mean, if Kage-taichou is unwell, we shouldn't impose on her to open the senkaimon for us," Rukia spoke, also feeling rather concerned for the sisters.

"Well… the truth is, _**I'm **_the rep of the Kidou Corps," Kage stated. Everyone except her sisters and Hinamori stared at her wide-eyed. After all, nothing much was known about the Kidou Corps except that they specialize in kidou and were specially selected from Shinigami Academy for their achievements in kidou. They were also the ones responsible for opening the senkaimon, but that was all there was to the Kidou Corps. Hitsugaya was the most surprised, though. Kage noticed the stares. "Stop staring," she snapped. "Fine, I'll explain to everyone when we get to the material world. Now let's just get this over and done with."

Kage stepped out of the group and walked till she was quite a distance away from them. She closed her diamond eyes and brought her hands together slowly. Concentrating hard, she clapped her hands and knelt down to the ground. She put her hands on the soft ground, her entire being glowing blue with reiatsu. With a flash, a senkaimon appeared with six Hell Butterflies ready and flying around the senkaimon. Hitsugaya, Rukia, Renji and Hinamori watched with rapt attention. Merenaito and Meian smiled, watching their sister open the senkaimon. Kage stood up, and turned around. She smiled and winked. "Let's go, shall we?"

"Wait! Taichou!" Matsumoto called out, rushing towards the group.

Hitsugaya turned around, his stoic expression lingering on. "Matsumoto?"

Matsumoto stopped in front of him, panting and wearing the captain haori with the number 10 on its back in kanji. She was obviously tired from overuse of shunpo. Where had she been? Definitely not the 10th Division office. It was quite near to where they were so she wouldn't be panting if she came directly from there, unless she shupo-ed all over Seireitei to find where they were. Matsumoto spoke, "Taichou… Are you really leaving?"

"Ah," replied Hitsugaya, looking down.

"I…" Matsumoto sighed. "I'm going to miss you, taichou… I don't know how I will handle the division… They suddenly gave me the haori and told me to take over. I don't know what happened, taichou, but I know that you're…going to leave…"

"Matsumoto…"

"Taichou, tell me how to handle the division properly. I want to at least make you proud, at least once, before you leave…" Matsumoto stopped, and rubbed away the glistening tears from her blue-grey eyes.

At the sight, Hitsugaya didn't know whether to smile or frown. The others were just watching and waiting for Hitsugaya to be done with his fukutaichou before they depart for the material world. Hitsugaya smiled in the end, even though it was obvious it was a forced smile. "Matsumoto, the fact that you tried… It has already done me proud."

"T-taichou…"

"I'm glad that I had you for a vice-captain, Matsumoto. No, Matsumoto-taichou," Hitsugaya responded, his smile fading a little.

Matsumoto was on the brink of breaking down. She didn't like how her real taichou acknowledged her as the new captain. She didn't like it. Honestly, she hated it! To have someone you care and respect and annoy so much call you captain when you didn't want him to… Matsumoto hated it! She despised the idea! She didn't want to be captain; she wanted to stay as a vice-captain, even if it would mean she would stay as a vice-captain forever, she wouldn't mind, as long as she continued to serve under Hitsugaya, her real taichou. (A/N: Wow, sounds like Ikkaku wanting to serve under Zaraki forever…)

"Taichou, I…"

"I am no longer your taichou. I lost that rank just last night during the trial," Hitsugaya replied, looking away. His smile was gone.

"Taichou… I mean, Hitsugaya-san… What'll I do without you?" Matsumoto cried, tears dripping again.

"Oi, since when does a captain cry?" Hitsugaya folded his arms and turned, his back facing Matsumoto. "After all, it _**is **_only temporary."

"_D-demo… _You speak like as if you'll never return, taichou!" Matsumoto shouted, still refusing to deny that the white-haired child before her was no longer her captain.

"Because there's a possibility that I won't."

"Hitsugaya-kun…" Hinamori whispered, on the brink of tears. Renji was looking at Matsumoto sadly while Rukia looked at the ground. Kage had fallen with a soft thud after opening the senkaimon and Merenaito and Meian immediately supported her. The sisters watched with stoic expressions, even though emotional situations were not their forte.

"I… I'll be waiting, taichou… I'll be waiting for you to return and become my captain again…" Matsumoto whispered, letting the tears fall silently to the ground.

Hitsugaya smiled once more, this time it was a true blue smile. "I'll hold you to that promise, Matsumoto."

"_Hai, _taichou!" Matsumoto replied enthusiastically, the smile back on her face as she watched her former captain enter the senkaimon with his group of accompaniments and left Seireitei. That dawn, the reiatsus of Hitsugaya Toushirou, Hinamori Momo, Abarai Renji, Kuchiki Rukia, Kurayami Merenaito Kanashii, Kurayami Mezurashii Kage and Kurayami Meian Kaminari disappeared instantly from Seireitei.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Aizen-sama," Ulquiorra acknowledged, bowing his head to show respect. The room was dark, save for some light from Hougyoku glowing and the light seeping from the corridor outside the room. Aizen was seated comfortably on his chair, with him and Ulquiorra being the only ones in the room.

"Ah, Ulquiorra. Close the door," Aizen requested. Ulquiorra bowed and closed the door. It was pitch-black in the room, the light only coming from Hougyoku now. Aizen spoke when he heard the door close, "I've called for you because I know that my precious Hitsugaya-kun has escaped last night. Moreover, I had used Kyouka Suigetsu to get to him, but of course to no avail." Aizen smiled. "I think my precious toy has been brought back to Seireitei."

"Are you sending me to Seireitei to bring the child back, Aizen-sama?"

Aizen's smile grew wider. "Ah, that's what everyone thinks, Ulquiorra, but I have other plans…" Aizen touched the Hougyoku. The Hougyoku turned black and attached itself to Aizen's hand. "Apparently, the key to fully awakening Hougyoku is in the material world. I want you to fetch it."

"Aizen-sama, what is-?"

Aizen cut Ulquiorra off by saying very briefly, "I think that's where my precious child is heading to, Ulquiorra. I know you won't disappoint me."

Ulquiorra blinked at first, not quite understanding what Aizen was talking about. After a moment, he put two and two together, and knew what Aizen had meant. Ulquiorra bowed. "_Hai._"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"So _**this **_is the material world, huh?" Meian asked no one in particular before whistling, "Sweet!"

"You mean, you've never come to the material world before?" Renji asked, blinking in surprise.

"Nope. We've been in Soul Society all this time," Meian explained, smiling. "I'm glad we get to come to where humans reside in!" Meian pumped her fist in the air enthusiastically.

"In any case, we should be looking for Ichigo," Rukia stated monotonously. Her eyes darted across Karakura Town warily and then back at the closing senkaimon with Hitsugaya and Merenaito supporting a weak Kage who couldn't walk on her own. Rukia looked at Renji then at Meian. "I can detect a strong reiatsu within this area, but it doesn't belong to any of us and neither does it belong to Ichigo. I am afraid that someone with a high level of reiatsu is following us."

Meian's look became serious. Her smile faded and a frown took its place instead. "I can sense it too. What do you have in mind, Kuchiki-san?"

"I propose that we get out of here and look for Ichigo at his house. We can't have any humans staring at us. We are already in our gigai so they can see us. If we are to act strangely here…" Rukia trailed off, looking at a few passer-bys.

"I understand." Meian turned to face her older sisters and Hitsugaya. Her frown faded and a smile appeared instantly. Meian waved her hand and yelled, "Yo! Come on, hurry up! You wouldn't want to keep us waiting, would ya?" Renji and Rukia sweat dropped anime style. Just a moment ago, they swore they saw the young captain frowning and looking so serious…

"No need to yell, Meian," Merenaito reprimanded softly. "We're just a few feet away from you." Merenaito looked at her surroundings, seeing a place full of grass and trees and happy miniature humans laughing and playing. "What is this place, Meian?"

"I believe it's what humans call a park," Meian replied, pouting a little. "Mou, you're the one who reads helluva lot, Merenaito! How come you don't know?"

Merenaito shot her an icy cold glare that Hitsugaya was very proud of. "I read _**fantasy **_novels, Meian."

"Blah blah blah, you still read a lot, don't you?"

Merenaito still glared at her younger sister, and then she sighed. She glanced over at Kage who was leaning on her for support. Merenaito sighed once more as she, Kage and Hitsugaya made their way towards the group. It was tough being the oldest sister, Merenaito noted silently to herself.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The clouds drifted by very quickly. Many unsuspecting people were walking about in the park, and many children with their parents were playing and having a lot of fun. Practically everyone was unaware of the impending danger that dwelled from the depths of hell, or somewhere in between there. Hueco Mondo, to be more exact. A rip began to appear in the sky, widening with very second. Hiding behind the rip was a human-like spirit whose face was as pale as a sheet and had cyan lines under his green eyes. A skull resembling an animal with horns was on his head, except that the skull seemed to have broken in half. He was wearing a white jacket and hakama with a sword hilt clearly seen on his waist where he wore a black sash. There was a gaping hole in his neck.

Ulquiorra Schiffer stepped out of the garganta.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Man… Took me a while before that Shinji _**finally **_gives me the break I need…" Ichigo moaned as he trudged his way back to the Kurosaki Clinic. "I wonder if they miss me…" Ichigo mumbled, 'they' referring to his family of two younger sisters and a shinigami father. Ichigo opened the door and an euphoric Isshin lunged himself towards him.

"ICHIGO!!!" Isshin yelled happily, only to be replied by a scowl clearly from his son and greeted by the concrete.

"Not so loud, pops! You're gonna make me deaf!" Ichigo scolded, folding his arms.

"Eh? Ichi-nii!" Karin acknowledged, running out of the house with Yuzu. "Ichi-nii, where have you been?"

"Yo, Karin, Yuzu," Ichigo greeted. "Nowhere that should concern you, Karin. The point is, I'm back for a little while before I have to go somewhere."

"Again? But you just came back!" Yuzu protested.

"Yeah, I know, but…"

Ichigo got cut off by a familiar voice, "Oi, Ichigo." Ichigo tensed up. He turned around slowly, knowing exactly who was there, only that he hoped the person he was expecting wasn't there. Unfortunately for him, Rukia was there, her arms folded and her glare, cold. "What do you think you're doing, Ichigo?"

Ichigo didn't know how to answer. There were so many people with Rukia! And most of them were pretty unfamiliar to him… He could recognize two of them as Renji and Hitsugaya, but he couldn't recognize the rest. Rukia was wearing a green shirt with a smiling rabbit face on the chest area and a white skirt above her knees. She was also wearing a pair of white rabbit-shaped slippers. Ichigo blushed. To him, Rukia looked hot.

Renji was wearing a white sleeveless shirt and blue track pants. He was wearing a silver necklace and there were silver chains here and there in the pockets of his pants, and he was wearing a pair of normal shoes. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, was wearing a long-sleeved black shirt with an outline of a dragon resembling Hyourinmaru on the front of his shirt. He was wearing tight navy blue jeans and sneakers with ice blue stripes.

There was a girl he was holding onto who looked a bit frail and weak. She had shoulder-length jet-black hair with some of her hair tied up in a ponytail and the rest of her hair let down. She wore a black shirt with two malicious-looking green eyes on it and loose black track pants. Her slippers were pure white, though. Another girl was supporting her with Hitsugaya. She had long silky jet-black hair and she was wearing a loose black shirt and pants just like the other girl, except that the shirt was patterned with glitter. She wore navy blue sandals. And then, yet another girl was close by. Her jet-black hair was totally tied up in a long ponytail and she was wearing a straw hat with a flower on it. She wore a plain white shirt with ochre yellow pants and red slippers.

The last girl was looking at Hitsugaya with a concerned look. Ichigo blinked. Maybe she was connected to him? She had her hair tied up in a bun and was wearing a pink kimono with a yellow obi sash. She looked the most traditional out of everyone else, most definitely. She must be in love with kimonos. (A/N: Umm… The thing is, I have no idea what to give to Hinamori to wear, and I love kimonos so…yeah…)

"Ichi-nii, who are these-?"

Ichigo cut Karin off by shoving her and Yuzu back into the house, claiming that it was 'just a couple of annoying friends who want to hang out with him' and kicked Isshin back instead of kindly asking him to re-enter the house. "_Gomen, _Karin, Yuzu. I don't think I'll be back anytime soon, so don't prepare dinner for me! _Ja ne_!" Ichigo heaved a sigh of relief as he heard the door lock. He glared at Rukia's group. "Oi! What do _**you **_think you're doing, Rukia?! Fancy barging on private property with your shinigami friends… Next time, if you wanna visit, visit properly!"

"Baka!" Rukia kicked him in the face, causing Ichigo to fall on his back. "We didn't come here to visit you! We came here because we need your help in something."

"Eh?" Ichigo got up and rubbed the back of his head. "You need my help? What's up?"

"Actually, it's not us who need help, it's more like he needs help…" Renji trailed off, looking in the direction of the white-haired ex-captain. Ichigo followed Renji's gaze and nearly laughed, seeing Hitsugaya standing there.

"Ahh? Toushirou actually needs _**my **_help?"

"As a matter of fact, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya retorted icily. "Yes, I do. Now it's whether or not you'll want to help."

"What happened, Toushirou? Who are these girls coming with you? And why aren't you correcting me? I mean, every time I call you Toushirou, you'd hawk at me and order me to call you Hitsugaya-taichou. What caused the change?"

The group looked at each other uneasily and some of them looked away. It looked like Hitsugaya wasn't going to explain this one. Renji and Rukia shifted uncomfortably while Ichigo waited for an answer, though he became rather impatient. Hinamori looked at the ground while Meian and Merenaito looked at each other. Kage looked at her sisters and sighed. Was no one really going to say something?

Kage spoke, "Actually, the truth is…" Everyone looked at her. "Tou-chan lost his title."

"What the heck?!" Ichigo shouted.

"No need to shout so loudly, Ichigo," Rukia reprimanded.

"No, I mean, _**Tou-chan**_?!"

Hitsugaya and Kage looked at each other, blushed a little and looked away. Hitsugaya scowled, "W-what's it to you, Kurosaki?!"

Ichigo was laughing his head off, clutching his stomach. He said in between laughs, "Oh… I'm… sorry… (A/N: No, he isn't) It's just… It's just that… Tou-chan sounds a little… It sounds a little like as if you're a baby, Toushirou!" Ichigo then burst into laughter once more. Kage glared at the laughing strawberry head, and so did Hitsugaya. When the laughter finally died down, Ichigo wiped away a tear from one of his eyes and spoke, "Alright, back to serious business. So, what happened?"

"Well… You see…" Merenaito spoke this time, beginning a long explanation. Rukia, Renji and Hitsugaya could only hope that the thickheaded Kurosaki Ichigo had enough brain juice to understand it all.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The 4th Espada glanced at his surroundings. The park was still full of humans with no reiatsu at all. "Trash," Ulquiorra muttered to himself. "All humans are just mere trash waiting to be thrown away." He walked over the people using reiatsu and looked around. He had been looking for hours but he couldn't find the key to Hougyoku's awakening. Suddenly, he felt a reiatsu spike that seemed utterly familiar to him. It was the one whose reiatsu was weaker than his when he hadn't released it, but it was also the one whose reiatsu would become even more powerful than his if he did release it.

The reiatsu of Kurosaki Ichigo.

"If his reiatsu is spiking and is near here, that means that the key is with him," Ulquiorra mumbled. "For Aizen-sama, I'll have to take it now."

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A/N: I apologise for dialogue… I seem to do that a lot now. I can't help myself. I'm a lot better at dialogue.

I need some votes from you. You see, like I said in the previous chapter, I want to make a trilogy but I want to know what you guys think. So, how about this: Either I write two stories – the prequel to this story and this story itself – or I write the entire trilogy – the prequel, this story and the sequel – and you can vote what you want me to do. I'll reveal my decision in the next chapter, but until then, vote away!

Of course, the one with the higher number of votes would be my decision. In a case of a tie, I'll have to ask everyone to re-vote. The reason why I'm doing this is because I have to start early; I've already started writing out the prequel on my paper pad, but I haven't started the sequel. If you want the trilogy, I'll have to begin planning. If you don't want the trilogy, then I don't have to plan anything and just concentrate on the prequel.

There is something I have to warn, though. If I choose writing only two stories out of the trilogy, the ending to this story will be very abrupt and awkward. If I choose wring the entire trilogy, then it would get more exciting, much better and mysterious. Just so you know, all three stories are under the Mystery genre. I also want your views on how I write mystery… coz I seriously suck at writing mysteries XD

Please review and vote! _Onegai!_


	8. 八　はち

Author's Note: Yup, I have decided to make it a trilogy. It seems that everyone voted for trilogy… Wow. I'm glad. I'll reveal the titles to everyone now: Prequel is The One, middle story is The Mask of Ice and as for the sequel, I can't decide on a good name. Should it be The End of Soul Society, The DiamondDust Rebellion (Only because of the upcoming Hitsugaya movie and I shall SQUEAL like the fangirl I am!! ) or The Final Death.

I can't really decide… But when I come to a decision, I'll inform everyone again. You can cast your votes too. I don't mind. I need some advice on this anyway.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 8 – Dreams of the Past and the Tie Between Hichigo and Koori!

"_Merenaito! Kage! Meian!" __the white-haired boy clad in the blue Shinigami Academy kimono-like uniform shouted out as he ran. A thunderstorm – a pretty bad one – was brewing and everyone else had rushed for shelter, but the boy was the only one running in the rain and slipping on mud to find his friends. "Merenaito! Kage! Meian! Where are you?!" the young Hitsugaya continued shouting his lungs out. His emotional outburst had greatly affected his control over his reiatsu, causing minor explosions here and there, and even some parts were being covered in ice._

"_Toushirou, come back here!" his teacher called out to him. "You can't go out there! It's too dangerous!"_

"_I don't care, sensei!" Hitsugaya shouted back, continuing to run. "It's my fault they're gone! I have to go look for them!"_

"_It's useless, Toushirou! They've disappeared without a trace! Not even a shred of their reiatsu can be felt in the whole of Soul Society now! You know that!" His sensei's words struck him hard. Hitsugaya slid and stopped. The rain batted against his young facial features and he looked down, letting his hair cover his aquamarine eyes. He felt a hand on his shoulder and didn't turn to look who it was. He just knew it was his sensei's hand. "I'm sorry, Toushirou. You never wanted this to happen; I know. But they're gone now. Accept that. Who knows, you might see them again someday." When he saw that Hitsugaya wasn't responding, he sighed and continued, "I'm getting the 10__th__ Division representative to come pick you now."_

_Hitsugaya felt the hand leave his shoulder and heard the soft but clear footsteps of his sensei behind him. He was glad it was raining, really._

_Because no one could tell he was crying._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Oi, wake up already, Toushirou," a familiar echoing voice spoke. Hitsugaya's eyes opened slowly but truly, and he took a look at his surroundings. He sighed. He was back in the frigid wasteland of blizzards once more. "What's up with the sigh?"_

_Hitsugaya sat up and looked up. The familiar figure of Koori was looming over him. Hitsugaya glared at him. "What the hell am I doing here, Koori?"_

"_I dragged you back down here from your dream, Toushirou," Koori replied, folding his arms. He turned, his back facing Hitsugaya. "You should thank me for that. You could've gone insane just by re-living that dream of the past."_

_Hitsugaya looked down sadly. "It felt so real…"_

"_Of course it did. Dreams always feel real," Koori paused and sighed. "Even for me."_

_The white-haired prodigy looked up in surprise. "You… have dreams?"_

"_Hey, don't be so shocked. Why can't I have dreams like you do when you sleep?"_

"_But… you're a hollow!"_

"_I'm __**your **__inner hollow, thus making me part of you, you dolt. So I experience the same dreams as you do, except that I know how to at least control my emotions," Koori retorted, turning back to face Hitsugaya and pointing a bony white finger at him. "Besides, I didn't drag you back from your dream just to tell you that."_

_Hitsugaya blinked in confusion. "Then… For what purpose did you bring me back here?"_

_Koori turned again, his back facing Hitsugaya. Koori folded his arms and looked to his left. "I… I'm returning Hyourinmaru to you."_

_Hitsugaya's eyes widened in surprise. "You what?"_

"_I said I'm returning Hyourinmaru to you, Toushirou. I hate repeating myself! Sheesh!" Koori yelled back, scoffing a little._

"_But why would you do that?" Hitsugaya asked, eyeing his inner hollow warily. "Is this another trick, Koori?"_

"_No it isn't."_

"_Why should I trust you?" Hitsugaya asked, his voice low and dangerous._

"_You have no reason to, Toushirou. I'm returning Hyourinmaru to you because it looks like you'll definitely need him in future." Hitsugaya didn't reply. Koori raised his hand dramatically and snapped his fingers. At once, a strong blizzard blew in their direction, and Hitsugaya had to shield his eyes using his hands to prevent the ice particles from getting into them. Koori, however, remained firm. It was then Hitsugaya realized that Koori wasn't wearing the hollowfied captain haori anymore. He was wearing the hollowfied shihakushou, just like Hitsugaya was, minus the hollowfied part. Their shihakushous flew wildly with the blizzard winds and when it died down, Hitsugaya was greeted by the familiar ice dragon whose ice at the sides of his mouth was cracking like as if he was smiling at him._

"_H-Hyourinmaru!" Hitsugaya acknowledged, smiling a little himself. He was glad to have his zanpakutou's spirit back with him._

"_Toushirou," the dragon acknowledged back._

_Hitsugaya's smiled widened for a moment, but when his eyes caught Koori walking away, his smile faded and he shouted out to Koori, "Oi! Koori!"_

_Koori stopped, not turning back to face Hitsugaya. "You best be training up with Hyourinmaru, Toushirou. Because the next time we meet…" Koori's voice became dangerous and he looked back at Hitsugaya who was a bit horrified to see Koori's eyes glowing a bright shade of ice blue. "… it ain't going to be pretty."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Hitsugaya-kun…" a warm and soft voice spoke, calling out to him. Hitsugaya groaned a little, a sign showing that he was about to wake up. Hinamori continued, "Hitsugaya-kun, wake up."

Emerald aquamarine eyes looked up at her in confusion. "H-Hinamori…?" Hitsugaya sat up, looking around. "Where… Where am I?"

"You're at Kurosaki-kun's house." Hinamori's face became worried. "You scared me, Hitsugaya-kun! You suddenly fainted just now… You scared me!!!"

"I… passed out? I don't remember…"

Hinamori flashed her childhood friend an assuring smile. "It's okay then, Shirou-chan."

"Don't call me Shirou-chan!"

"Mou! Why not? It's cute!" Hitsugaya just scoffed and Hinamori pouted. After a moment of silence, Hinamori continued, "Anyway, Shirou-chan, we have to go look for the vaizards to see if they can help you. Kurosaki-kun, Abarai-kun, Kuchiki-san, Kage-taichou, Merenaito-taichou and Meian-taichou are all waiting downstairs for you."

"What? We're leaving now?" Hitsugaya asked the obvious, rubbing his head a little. He was wondering why it had hurt so much after he woke up.

"Of course! We have to settle your problem now! Come on, Shirou-chan! It's not nice to keep everyone waiting!" Hinamori teased, walking down the stairs quickly.

Even though Hinamori was out of sight, Hitsugaya retorted, "I told you! It's not Shirou-chan!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…_I sense him…" Koori mumbled quietly to himself. He had hidden himself away in an ice cave to avoid getting seen by Hyourinmaru. Koori looked up, a serious look on his face. "I sense him… Why have I not sensed him before? Is it because he was deliberately hiding from me?" Koori sighed and looked back down. "Hichigo… No matter what, I have to see you. Even if it means taking over Toushirou one more time."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Yo, Toushirou!" Ichigo greeted, raising up his hand. "Looks like you're all ready to go! How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Kurosaki, considering the fact that you weren't the one who woke me up," Hitsugaya stated, earning a giggle from Hinamori, Rukia and Meian, and a little chuckle from Renji. The white-haired prodigy was actually teasing the substitute shinigami.

"Whatever, Toushirou," Ichigo replied, rolling his eyes. "Anyway, we should get going now."

"Right," everyone replied, proceeding to walk out of the house. When Ichigo closed the door, he suddenly felt an excruciating pain in his head, and so did Hitsugaya. Both held up a hand to hold their heads in hope of easing the pain, but the pain was still there.

"Toushi, are you okay?" Merenaito asked concernedly, her voice soft and barely above a whisper.

"Just a migraine, Merenaito," Hitsugaya managed to mutter out painfully.

Merenaito's eyes narrowed. "It's not just a migraine, Toushi. Is that inner hollow of yours giving you trouble again?"

Hinamori, who heard it, rushed over to Hitsugaya's side. "Shirou-chan, is that true? Is it trying to take over you again?"

"How about you, Ichigo? Is it also trying to take over you?" Rukia asked, putting a hand on Ichigo's shoulder.

"Y-yeah… This pain… It's familiar… It's the pain when the hollow tries to take over…" Ichigo replied, his eyes straining to open, trying to resist the hollow's control. "Toushirou, you still don't know how to control it, so it'd make sense that you're feeling the pain, but… I… I've already known how, but why…?"

For some strange reason, the pain began to die down slowly. Ichigo and Hitsugaya blinked in confusion, removing their hands. What happened?

_Toushirou._

"Koori?" Hitsugaya whispered to himself. No one else heard him, thankfully.

_You know__… You can just talk to me using your mind, like telepathy. It's possible for vaizards to do that._

"_Ok. So what happened?" Hitsugaya asked, clearly confused._

Over at Ichigo, he was also having the same trouble with the communication with his hollow. _Oi, king! It's been some time, eh?_

"What the hell…?"

Rukia and Renji tugged at Ichigo's arms, shaking him back to reality and preventing him from cursing to no one like that. "Ichigo, are you insane? Fancy talking to yourself like that!" Renji shouted at the orange-haired substitute.

"I'm not insane, Renji!" Ichigo slapped his head. "My damn hollow's trying to talk to me through my mind!" Ichigo spun his head to face Hitsugaya. "Oi! Toushirou! You're having the same problem, aren't you?"

Hitsugaya blinked back into reality. "A-ah… Yeah…"

_Don't ignore me like that, Toushirou!_

"_Shut __**up**__, Koori!" Hitsugaya snapped mentally._

_Come on, Toushirou, just let me take over this time!_

"_No. Freaking. Way. Am. I. Going. To. Let. You. Do. That." Hitsugaya scowled._

_But I need to talk to Hichigo!_

"_Hichigo? You mean Kurosaki's inner hollow?"_

_You're pretty smart._

"_Are you complimenting me? It doesn't sound like it."_

_And inappreciative._

"Ne, Tou-chan," Kage's voice snapped Hitsugaya back into reality. "You're daydreaming. That hollow is getting really irritating. I think it's affecting your reaction speed."

Hitsugaya glared at Kage for that comment, then let it slide past him. He walked up to Ichigo and informed him, "Kurosaki, Koori wants to speak to your hollow."

"Koori?" Everyone chorused.

Hitsugaya sighed, "The name of you-know-who."

"Hollows have names?" Ichigo asked dumbly, blinking in confusion.

_Well, duh._

"Well, duh." Hitsugaya blinked twice in rapid motion and covered his mouth immediately. Everyone stared at him wide-eyed, even Merenaito and Kage. Had that really come out from his mouth? Was that his voice? Hitsugaya blinked again, and so did Ichigo.

"Toushirou… You actually said that?" Ichigo asked, pointing a finger at the white-haired prodigy.

Hitsugaya removed his hands, trying to regain his composure. "Anyway," Hitsugaya spoke, trying to get off the subject. "Kurosaki, Koori says that he needs to speak with your hollow called Hichigo."

Ichigo stifled his laughter. "So that's my hollow's name? Hichigo? Sounds like my name except with a 'h' in front."

_That's the point, dumbass._

"That's the point, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya replied, being very careful not to say anything that would humiliate himself this time.

_Damn, I thought I would be able to see you get laughed at, Toushirou._

"_I told you to shut up, Koori! Your opinions are getting my perceptive of things really messed up!"_

_What's wrong with that? I'm just voicing out my opinion!_

"_Shut UP!"_

"So, lemme get this straight, your inner hollow wants to speak with my inner hollow, Toushirou?" Ichigo asked the obvious.

"Yes, Kurosaki," came Hitsugaya's simple reply.

"And to do that, they'd have to resurface using us, right?" Hitsugaya nodded. "Well, no (bleep)ing way am I going to let _**him **_take over again. Who knows what might happen with him resurfacing?"

Hitsugaya twitched in annoyance. "That's another reason why I need to gain control over Koori as soon as possible, Kurosaki! I can't let him have his way and destroy everything in his path!"

_Hey! Since when did I say I wanted to do that?! Don't you go around accusi__ng me, Toushirou! Or else I'll definitely not let you off!_

Hitsugaya ignored the voice in his head. Meian then spoke, "So what are we waiting for? Let's go already!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Hah? Ichigo, ya back already?" Shinji asked. "I thought ya said that ya wanted ta' rest up or somethin'."

Hitsugaya, Hinamori, Rukia, Renji and the Kurayami sisters looked around at their surroundings. They had been brought to an abandoned warehouse with lots of unused equipment thrown to one side. There were various instruments used for some form of exercising, but the group ignored them. They looked up to see who were living in the warehouse.

There was a blonde man, a small blonde girl whose hair was tied up in pigtails, a giant pink-haired man, a girl wearing spectacles with long braided hair, a tall man with a spiked afro, a man with long, wavy, blond hair, a teenager with short grey hair and a girl with green hair. Quite the strangest of ex-shinigami, and they looked pretty weird, really. Hitsugaya cringed a little. _**These **_were the vaizards who trained Ichigo to control his inner hollow? And he was going to have the same treatment?

Hitsugaya Toushirou did _**not **_want to know.

"Yup, but I got a request, Shinji," Ichigo replied with a huge grin on his face. "I brought some of my friends who came here from Seireitei. One of them," Ichigo winked at Hitsugaya who growled. "has a hollow problem so could you help him out?"

"Hah? Came here from Seireitei?" Hiyori muttered out. "That means that they're freakin' shinigami, baka! Why'd ya bring 'em here to our hideout!" Hiyori demanded, getting really pissed. "Even if one of 'em got a hollow problem on his hands, he'd be better off without our help!"

"Now, now, Hiyori," Shinji calmed her down. "Don't be so angry at Ichigo's guests. If one of 'em really has a problem with his hollow, we should help, eh?"

Hiyori took out one of her slippers and smacked Shinji senseless with it. "Yer too soft-hearted, Shinji! But fine! Do what ya want! I ain't gonna bother ya."

Hitsugaya cringed again. The way the vaizards spoke reminded him of Ichimaru, and just thinking of that wily fox-faced traitor made Hitsugaya pissed. Shinji jumped down from one of the crates in the warehouse. "So, care ta' introduce yer friends to us, Ichigo?"

"Ah, ok." Ichigo began the introductions, "This is Kuchiki Rukia, then Abarai Renji, then um… Lemme see… Hinamori Momo, right?" Hinamori nodded shyly while Hitsugaya began shooting daggers at Ichigo for nearly forgetting Hinamori's name. Ichigo continued, "And then there are Kurayami Kage, Kurayami Merenaito and Kurayami Meian, am I right?" Kage grunted, Merenaito looked away and Meian giggled and nodded. "And then this is the one who has the hollow problem, Hitsugaya Toushirou."

"Hmm… Hitsugaya Toushirou, eh?"

Hitsugaya blinked. "Yeah…?"

"Oh, no, it's nothin'. Just that I didn't expect such a loyal taichou ta' gain hollow powers and betray Soul Society."

"I didn't betray Soul Society," Hitsugaya scowled.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I don't think I care about that right now. I think we should solve yer hollow problem," Shinji looked at his fellow vaizards and smirked. Then he looked at Ichigo. "But first, let's have lunch!"

Ichigo's eyes widened. "Oh no! You're not gonna make me wash the dishes again, are you?!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hichigo…" Koori muttered out, letting the cold icy wind blow in his face. His shihakushou flew around wildly and so did Hichigo's._

"_Yeah, Koori, it's been a long time," Hichigo sneered, folding his arms cockily._

"_What're you doing in here?" Koori glanced at his surroundings. It was clearly Hitsugaya's dreamscape. "This is Toushirou's mind… Only Hyourinmaru and I should be able to come here… Why are you…?"_

"_You surprised? Pshe! Don't be!" Hichigo scoffed, throwing back his head. "You're the one who wanted to see me, after all. Call this weird ability a tie between inner hollows."_

"_Oh yes… I __**have **__been wanting to see you," Koori muttered under his breath. He then spoke up, "Hichigo, tell me. Who am I?"_

_Hichigo seemed shocked, even though he was still smiling. "You don't remember?" Koori looked down and shook his head. The blizzard was getting stronger. "Poor you. You lost your memory after that incident and woke up as a hollow."_

"_Yes. I guess it was because, in your language, our 'kings' apparently met up in Soul Society so as hollows, we could communicate with each other…"_

"_Yup. You're lucky that you met me. I suppose you still remember who I was when we were humans, yes?" Hichigo asked, hoping that Koori remembered._

"_That's precisely the reason why I'm asking you now! Hichigo… Who am I?"_

_Hichigo looked away. "My king is waking up soon."_

"_Hichigo!" Koori protested._

"_I'll talk to you next time, okay, Koori?"_

_Before Koori could even reply, Hichigo disappeared totally. Koori looked down. His hopes for regaining his memories had dashed. Not even Hichigo was willing to tell him. Was his past truly that frightening?_

"_Koori?" Hyourinmaru rumbled, causing Koori to yelp in terror. "What's wrong? You seem tense."_

_Koori looked back at Hyourinmaru then looked away. "…No. It's nothing. Nothing's wrong, Hyourinmaru."_

"_I felt a strong presence here, Koori," Hyourinmaru stated suspiciously, eyeing Koori warily. Koori nearly smirked at this. Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru were alike in many ways. "Are you sure nothing is wrong?"_

"_I'm sure, Hyourinmaru." Koori clenched his fists. "I'm sure."_

_A tear fell from one of his eyes._

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A/N: It's a little bit humorous in this chapter, don't you think? Anyway, I've decided to give out little chapter previews to make everyone happy. I hope you'll be pleased. Oh yes, the preview will be in just italics and quotes, no descriptions. There will be descriptions in the chapter itself.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Tou-chan… What's wrong?"_

"_I… I'm sorry, Kage! I'm sorry!"_

"_Sorry…? For what…?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Koori? What are you…?"_

"_Shut up and fight, Toushirou!"_

"_Fight? We're fighting? Here?"_

"_Yes, you dolt! Don't you want to reign over me?"_

"_Well, yeah, but…"_

"_Stop hesitating and call upon Hyourinmaru already!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_His inner hollow is dangerous. I don't think even we can help him control over it."_

"_No way! Is Toushirou's hollow that strong? But… you helped me in my case!"_

"_That's because yer hollow is __**nothin' **__compared to his."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Ok, cast your votes for which name I should pick for the sequel. I'm kind of leaning towards The End of Soul Society, but I need some feedback from you readers so… please? (puppy dog eyes) Thanks!


	9. 九　きゅう

Author's Note: Well, it's decided. I'm calling the sequel The End of Soul Society. Look out for it after the prequel is complete! And the prequel will be up in about one or two months' time. _Gomen_, I'll be having my review tests in school and it'll be damn hectic so I most probably won't be able to update unless it's the weekends or Fridays. I'm only allowed to use the computer on Fridays and weekends when school reopens. Damn…

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

Additional note – **Bold: remembering small parts of dream**

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Chapter 9 – Horrors of the Past and the Inner Hollow

Inquisitive golden brown eyes opened to a worried Rukia who was watching over him. Ichigo blinked and sat up on the bed with Rukia supporting him. The Kuchiki asked concernedly, "Are you okay, Ichigo?"

"Ah," the orange-haired substitute shinigami replied, rubbing his head. "Just a little headache… What happened?"

"You fainted during lunch," answered Rukia whose voice became soft. "I waited for you to wake up."

"I… fainted?"

"Yeah," Rukia replied softly, turning her gaze towards Kage who was moving her hand across an unconscious Hitsugaya's white hair, looking equally worried about him. "Both you and Hitsugaya-san fainted. Kage-taichou is by him right now."

Ichigo followed her gaze. "So, Toushirou fainted too…"

Kage blinked back to reality, realizing that Ichigo had woken up. She turned her head to look at him and spoke softly, "Ichigo, you've woken up, huh?"

"Er, yeah."

To his surprise, the black-haired girl sighed worriedly and went back to playing with Hitsugaya's hair. Kage mumbled, "I wonder when he's going to wake up…"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Blood__…_

"_Call the 4__th__ Division! Hurry!"_

_More blood…_

"_Call the 12__th__ Division too! They need to investigate this!"_

_Blood was everywhere…_

"_Report this to Yamamoto-soutaichou at once!"_

_Make it stop… Make it all stop…_

"_Don't just stand there! Report this to Yamamoto-soutaichou at once!"_

_Make the shouting stop! Make the noise stop! Make the blood stop! Make the horrors stop!_

"_Poor girls… And they were so young too…"_

"_Yeah, I heard that they were real prodigies when they were studying in the Academy."_

"_Hey, weren't they the ones who were reported missing?"_

_MAKE IT ALL STOP!!!_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya bolted straight upright, panting as his face was covered with perspiration. He made an effort to wipe the sweat away, but he just couldn't stop sweating like hell. His usually calm teal eyes showed hints of fear and horrification. He couldn't think straight; he was too horrified by the dream – no, _**nightmare**_ – and just couldn't calm down. He was still panting like crazy, unable to get the nightmare off his mind.

**Blood****…**

Hitsugaya felt the urge to bang his head against the wall to get it off his mind, but he was afraid that if he fell unconscious, he would be plagued by the same nightmare all over again. He just couldn't get it off his already tired mind. Any more nightmares, and he might just break. He suddenly felt a warm sensation on his shoulder and turned his head curiously. Kage had placed her hand on his shoulder in attempt to calm her childhood friend down. Kage spoke, "Tou-chan… What's wrong?"

**More blood****…**

To her surprise, Hitsugaya gripped onto her wrists and looked at her with pleading teal eyes. She could've sworn she saw his eyes glistening with welled-up tears. "I…" Hitsugaya whimpered. Kage couldn't take it. She never saw Hitsugaya this broken before. "I'm sorry, Kage! I'm sorry!"

By this time, Hitsugaya's yells of apology had attracted everyone except the vaizards to enter the room. Merenaito and Meian went to Kage's side, watching the scene in confusion. Kage was pretty confused herself. "Sorry…?" she muttered out, unsure of what Hitsugaya was talking about. "For what…?"

**Blood was everywhere****…**

Hitsugaya closed his eyes to block out the bloody illusions he was seeing, but it didn't help. He just saw more blood at the back of his mind. "You and your sisters… nearly died because of me! I'm sorry!"

Merenaito's golden eyes softened. She knew what Hitsugaya was afraid of now, just by looking at him. She sat down on the bed next to the white-haired child and gave him a small hug. "Toushi, don't be afraid. I know what's been scaring you now."

"M… Merenaito…?" Hitsugaya whispered under his breath.

"You should know by now. We're clairvoyant. We can tell what you're thinking." Merenaito then faced Hitsugaya. "You thought that we died, didn't you?"

Hitsugaya nodded his head. Kage and Meian softened. "Tou-Tou…" Meian began. "That day, it wasn't your fault. Stop blaming yourself. Look at us! We're still alive!" Meian spoke, trying to lighten up the atmosphere. "That just proves that you didn't cause anything, Tou-Tou. Stop blaming yourself, m'kay?"

Hitsugaya didn't know how to react. He had thought all this while, it had been his fault. Yet when they appeared before him again, he thought they had come back for him. He had thought they wouldn't forgive him. He had thought…

When he felt someone else hug him, he was quite surprised to see Hinamori being the one giving him the hug. Somehow, Hinamori's hugs felt different from Merenaito's, Kage's and Meian's. It had more… _**warmth **_and Hitsugaya would instantly feel at ease. It was most probably because Hinamori loved hugging him to death when they were little. "Ne, Shirou-chan," Hinamori began. "Whatever happened, you should put it behind you. If you don't want to tell us what happened, it's okay. All we want, all _**I **_want, is for you to be happy, Shirou-chan."

Hitsugaya blinked his small tears away, and looked at the Kurayami sisters, feeling rather unsure. The nightmare didn't haunt him as much as it did when he just woke up, but he felt much better. The Kurayamis gave a wink. Hitsugaya finally cracked a smile. "Ah…" he replied, his voice rather soft. "_Arigatou, _Hinamori."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Right, I see that yer woken up, eh?" Shinji asked the obvious when he saw Hitsugaya stepping into the 'living room' which was the big empty space in the warehouse where the vaizards gathered. He didn't even know the warehouse had bedrooms. At least no humans would ever come to this abandoned place. Luckily for the group, they had left their gigai in the rooms and no one would be able to see them. "Ready ta' start yer trainin'?"

"Training?" Hitsugaya enquired, blinking.

"Yep, trainin'," Hiyori answered smoothly like as if she had explained this a thousand times. "Ya go down that there staircase and we'll all go down with ya. Then that's where yer gonna turn into a hollow and we try ta' fight ya while ya fight with yer own inner hollow. Of course, it's pretty darn confusing when I say it like this, but ya gonna understand when ya go down there."

"Or ya can just ask Ichigo," Shinji continued. "We don't mind if ya want to take some time in askin' him about the trainin'."

Hitsugaya immediately turned to face the orange-haired vaizard, and everyone in the group did the same. Ichigo sweat dropped, not used to having so many pairs of eyes staring at him for some explanations. "So, Ichigo," Renji began, just as curious as to what kind of training Ichigo had been put through. "how did the training go?"

"And what was it like?" Hitsugaya asked, needing to get as much information about this as possible to get himself all ready for it.

"Well, let's see…" Ichigo trailed off. He, of course, couldn't forget the hellish training he had been put through in that place. Searching for suitable words to phrase the meaning of the training, Ichigo then began explaining, "It's like what Hiyori said. You turn into a hollow when you're down there. First they'll do something weird that'll knock you out and toss you down there where you'll turn into a hollow."

"Why is it that you would turn into a hollow when you're down there?" Hitsugaya asked.

"Because you're knocked out so you wouldn't have any control over your body," Kage answered, surprising even the vaizards who heard their conversation. "Whereas precisely because you're knocked out, within yourself, you would have to fight and conquer your inner hollow. Depending on how strong the hollow is, the time needed to gain control would be either long or short. And also, because of the inner battle between you and your hollow, your body would just be left out of control, not exactly following your actions and not exactly following your hollow's actions. This is a sign of the fight for control." (A/N: …Of course, I made that up. I'm not sure if it's true or not. It's just my theory)

"How didja know?" Shinji demanded, feeling a little bit panicky because someone who wasn't a vaizard and wasn't even his comrade actually knew the secret behind the training.

Kage merely shrugged. "Just a theory."

"Not that Kage knew or anything…" Merenaito muttered under her breath.

"Which reminds me, Kage-taichou…" Rukia began, but Meian cut her off.

"Ne, Kuchiki-san, while we're in the material world, there's no need to call us by title." Meian smiled warmly. "If you're willing to just call us by our names like what Tou-Tou does, we'd be happy to call you by your names as well."

Rukia smiled as well. "All right, Meian. Kage," Rukia continued, turning to face Kage. "Back at Seireitei, you managed to open the senkaimon by just clapping your hands… And you said that you were the representative of the Kidou Corps. And you also said that you would explain everything. So…"

"We'll wait till all this is over, Rukia," Kage replied, stealing a glance at Hitsugaya. "I want to wait till Tou-chan's training to done and over with. That'd be one less worry off my mind." Kage then smiled a little, and Hitsugaya smiled back.

"Yeah, so anyway," Ichigo continued. "When you become a hollow, you would have to fight with your own inner hollow for the control. Of course you have to beat the crap outta that hollow, or else you'd turn into a hollow forever. When you manage to beat him, then you gain control and then nothing bad will happen after that, just more training to get the hang of your new hollow powers, that's all there is to it."

"And there's one more thing I hafta warn ya, Hitsugaya-san…" Lisa spoke this time, looking up from her magazine. "Ichigo here took a very long time, 'bout the same time as Hiyori, which was 69 minutes and 2 seconds." Hitsugaya resisted the urge to gulp, and Lisa continued, "Durin' that time, Ichigo turned into his full hollow form, which was a very dangerous stage. Luckily he managed ta' beat his hollow at that time, 'cos any longer and he'd just lose himself."

"Long story short," Shinji continued. "Beat yer hollow before yer body turns into full hollow form."

"…All right," Hitsugaya agreed, his heart racing with nervousness and fear. This would be the turning point of his life: whether to live or to die. "I'm ready."

Shinji smiled. "Good." He used shunpo to get in front of Hitsugaya, his hand raising. His hand glowed a bright shade of blue in front of the white-haired ex-captain. Shinji muttered, "This is it, Hitsugaya-san." Hitsugaya could feel himself succumbing to a deep sleep. "Hope ya have a great battle."

And everything turned to black.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Hitsugaya looked around at his surroundings. It was totally different from what he usually saw. Sure, it was still a frigid wasteland, but there weren't any more blizzards and the snow began to melt. Hitsugaya blinked. That was odd… The snow in his __mind never melted before, not even once in his entire life as a shinigami. With every step, Hitsugaya tried not to slip on the freezing cold water that used to be snow. The temperature was still pretty much the same, so why was the snow melting? It was like as if summer was going to take place._

_Not answering his question, he felt someone punch him straight in the face. He stumbled and fell on his back, rubbing his face. Kage delivered even worse punches but still, whoever did that to him had hurt his cheek. Hitsugaya hissed in pain as he heard soft footsteps coming towards him. He suddenly felt a kick on his sides, causing him to roll across the ground. His shihakushou got wet. Getting really irritated by being pushed around without even knowing the reason, the white-haired prodigy stood up and turned to face his attacker, only to be answered with another punch. Hitsugaya jumped back in time before his attacker delivered the punch. He stared hard at the puncher and his eyes widened._

"_Koori?" Hitsugaya breathed. Why was Koori attacking him for no reason? "Why are you…?"_

"_Shut up and fight, Toushirou!" Koori yelled, getting ready to deliver yet another punch which Hitsugaya managed to avoid in time._

_Landing on the ground gracefully, Hitsugaya blinked and asked, "Fight? We're fighting?" Hitsugaya looked at the unfamiliar dreamscape. "Here?"_

_While Hitsugaya was distracted, Koori landed a kick in his stomach. "Yes, you dolt!" Koori answered with hints of annoyance in his voice. "Don't you want to reign over me?" Koori taunted._

"_Well, yeah…" Hitsugaya trailed off, thinking about the situation. Perhaps this was the training Ichigo had mentioned; the time had come for him to gain control over his hollow by defeating him in his mind. But he somehow felt a tie with Koori, like as if he wanted to protect Koori instead of hurting him. "But…"_

_Koori unsheathed his Hyourinmaru-like zanpakutou, obviously getting very impatient. "Stop hesitating and call upon Hyourinmaru already!" Koori proceeded to slash at Hitsugaya who avoided Koori's every movement._

_Using shunpo, both white-haired spiritual beings began their battle with Koori's zanpakutou already unsheathed, whereas Hitsugaya was still hesitating about fighting Koori like that. He hadn't unsheathed Hyourinmaru. Speaking of Hyourinmaru, Hitsugaya couldn't see the dragon anywhere. Why? Koori had already agreed to return Hyourinmaru's spirit to him, so Koori didn't have anything to do with Hyourinmaru's sudden disappearance, unless…_

"_Didn't you hear what I'm saying?!" Koori yelled, snapping Hitsugaya out of his trance. "I said to stop hesitating and call upon Hyourinmaru already!"_

_Call upon Hyourinmaru? That was it! Maybe Hyourinmaru wasn't anywhere in the dreamscape because he was waiting for Hitsugaya to call upon him. Hitsugaya had to give it a shot. He really needed Hyourinmaru's help this time, whether he liked it or not, he needed help. "Souten ni zase, Hyourinmaru!" Hitsugaya called upon Hyourinmaru's release, unsheathing the blade. His zanpakutou immediately glowed a bright shade of ice blue and the dragon obediently appeared from the skies. Hyourinmaru flied down by Hitsugaya's side._

"_You called, Toushirou?" the dragon mocked._

"_I most definitely did," Hitsugaya answered before jumping up into the air with Koori smirking and following him. Hitsugaya swung his zanpakutou's blade towards Koori and Hyourinmaru flew towards Koori. Koori held up his zanpakutou in an effort to shield himself, only to be pushed backwards by the dragon's sheer strength. Hyourinmaru split himself into the rushing water in an attempt to freeze Koori but not even a drop of water landed on the cocky hollow. Hyourinmaru reformed beside Hitsugaya._

"_What? Is that all your shikai can do?" Koori scoffed, bringing his blade down to waist level. "You know, Toushirou, there's more to your shikai than you'll ever know. You haven't even mastered shikai yet. How can you hope to master bankai?"_

"_Shut up!" Hitsugaya swung the blade towards Koori again and Hyourinmaru obeyed, flying towards Koori. Koori however dodged the attack effortlessly, causing Hitsugaya's and Hyourinmaru's eyes to widen. "What?" Hitsugaya breathed. Before he knew it, Koori was right behind him and delivered another punch, sending Hitsugaya back to the ground._

"_Toushirou!" Hyourinmaru called out concernedly, landing on the ground next to his wielder. "Toushirou, are you able to stand?"_

_Hitsugaya placed his hand on Hyourinmaru's icy scales for support and stood up shakily. "Yeah," he replied._

"_That was a rough landing, Toushirou. Are you sure you're __all right?"_

"_Ah," came Hitsugaya's simple reply. "I need to defeat him, Hyourinmaru."_

_Hyourinmaru's crimson eyes darkened. "I know."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Yer doing great, Love!" Shinji shouted out to encourage the vaizard currently fighting Hitsugaya's hollowfied body. "Keep at it and Lisa will take over later!"

Hinamori couldn't believe what she was watching. Her childhood friend, her Shirou-chan, had a full hollow mask covering his face. It was made of partially translucent ice so Hinamori was able to see the sadistic grin underneath the mask. The mask didn't cover his now black eyes with ice blue irises and Hinamori had to admit, it was creepy seeing her childhood friend like that. The full mask resembled a dragon's; in fact, it resembled Hyourinmaru's face, not even a detail was left out. It looked like as if it was a tiny shinigami version of Hyourinmaru fighting against the vaizard known as Love. To Hinamori, it was both amusing and terrifying.

Snapping Hinamori out of her trance, Meian called out to her, "Momo-chan! Look out!" Hinamori looked up and was shocked to see a big chunk of ice coming towards her. She shunpo-ed out of the way before getting hit by it.

"Damn! Hacchi!" Hiyori shouted to Hacchi. "Put up another barrier or else that guy's gonna order up another of his ice meteorites again!"

"_Hai_," came Hacchi's reply as he summoned another bakudou to replace the one that had been broken by Hitsugaya. Well, not really Hitsugaya, but still…

"Shinji," Ichigo spoke.

"Yeah?"

"That time, I didn't even have enough power to wreck the barrier. I only made it unsteady. No matter how much my hollow tried, the barrier just couldn't break down, but Toushirou could do it umpteen times. I think this is the 3rd time he's broken down the barrier. Why's that?" Ichigo asked.

Shinji sighed. "I was hopin' Hitsugaya's case wouldn't turn out like this either…"

"Eh? What do you mean, Shinji?"

"I sensed it when we first met," Shinji began to explain, resting his head on his palms. "He smelled more like hollow than shinigami and I recognize the smell of the hollow. The kid himself is captain-class, but the hollow smells of somethin' even more powerful. Much much more powerful…"

Ichigo instantly thought Vasto Lorde, but cancelled the thought out. After all, Vasto Lordes could only be found in Hueco Mondo, and to get one Vasto Lorde as an inner hollow, Hitsugaya'd have to be crazy enough to go to Hueco Mondo himself to specially find a Vasto Lorde. Of course Hitsugaya Toushirou wasn't that crazy, unless the Hougyoku did something like a power-up to him. Still, Ichigo denied the fact that Hitsugaya's hollow smelled like a Vasto Lorde. It sounded perfectly insane!

"His inner hollow is dangerous," Shinji's voice became serious and low. "I don't think even we can help him control it."

"No way!" Ichigo exclaimed, backing off a little, not believing what he had heard. "Is Toushirou's hollow _**that **_strong? But… you helped me in my case!"

Shinji looked at him, and his eyes darkened. Ichigo could tell how serious this matter was. It was so serious that even Shinji looked like as if he had a hellish problem with it. "That's 'cos yer hollow is _**nothin' **_compared to his."

"N-nothing?!" Ichigo stared wide-eyed at the fighting Love and Hitsugaya. Ice was starting to form on Hitsugaya's limbs while Love looked exhausted from fighting him. And damn it, he had only fought for fifteen minutes! There was icy cold mist within the barrier, most probably coming from Hitsugaya's reiatsu leak. Ichigo thought hard about it. If his hollow was already _**that **_hard to control, he wouldn't want to think about what horrifying treatment Hitsugaya was having in his mind.

Kurosaki Ichigo would be _**dead **_if he had a hollow that strong.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_You know, Toushirou," Koori spoke, not sounding very worn out at all. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, was sweating and panting like hell. Hyourinmaru, being part of Hitsugaya's soul, felt as tired as he. "The solution to this is very simple. Just acc__ept and acknowledge me as your inner hollow."_

"_That would mean…" Hitsugaya paused for another intake of breath. "…that I would become a full-fledged hollow forever." Hitsugaya swung his blade once more. "I would __**not **__let myself do that, Koori!"_

_Koori sighed. "You're still the same as before, ain't you? Still as stubborn as ever." Koori shunpo-ed off and appeared behind Hitsugaya. He kicked Hitsugaya who gave out a yelp in pain. Before getting pushed to the ground again, Hyourinmaru blocked the way, allowing his wielder to land on his head. "It would take more than just shikai to defeat me, Toushirou. But then again, your bankai has yet to be mastered, so I guess it would take much more than just bankai to defeat me."_

"_Then I would let Toushirou learn about the full bankai," Hyourinmaru retorted coldly, trying as much as he could to help Hitsugaya._

"_Psh! Even a full bankai wouldn't be enough!" Koori looked at Hitsugaya in the eye. "I've already told you…" Hitsugaya suddenly felt weak, and his vision became blurry._

'_Shit, not this again…' Hitsugaya thought to himself._

"_The solution to all of this pointless fighting is simple…" Koori disappeared and re-appeared in front of Hitsugaya, pulling his chin closer to him. "Accept me, Hitsugaya Toushirou. Accept me and everything will be all right…"_

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A/N: I love writing about Koori using his voice hypnotism. It gives me a tingling feeling! Ooh!!! Now I feel pumped up to write the next chapter… but first, reviews! (cackles) XD

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!"_

"_Stop cursing, Ichigo!"_

"_I can't help it! If this keeps up, Toushirou's gonna… He's gonna…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_All of the vaizards except you and Hiyori have been knocked out, Shinji. Do you think you need some extra help?"_

"_Nah, it'd be great an' all, but no thanks. Thanks for offering anyway."_

"_No, I think… I think you could really need some help… He needs us. He needs __**me**__."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I'll show you the true power of Hyourinmaru's bankai!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Well, Toushirou, unfortunately for you, I __**do **__remember my zanpakutou's __**real **__name, but I don't think you're worthy to even learn it."_

"_You're saying like as if I'm going to be wielding it."_

"_Because you __**will.**__"_

"_Are you saying…?"_

"_Yes. Ukitake and Kyouraku aren't the only ones who have twin zanpakutous, Toushirou. __**You're **__the third one to wield twins."_

"_How is that possible?!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Ahaha… I love keeping readers in suspense XD


	10. 十　じゅう

Author's Note: Hugs from me to those who reviewed! XD I'm being random… Anyway, thanks for all the sweet reviews! Continue reviewing!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

Confirmed: **Bold – remembering parts of dream/sound effects**

Sorry for making you confused, if you were.

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Chapter 10 – Give It Your All

"Oh. My. Gawd…"

Kurosaki Ichigo could _**not **_believe what he was seeing. There was frozen blood everywhere within the barrier, along with fallen and bloodied vaizards lying all over the training grounds. The body of Hitsugaya was still standing strong and proud, his limbs all covered in a thick coat of ice. The ice was beginning to creep across the torso area, as well as his back. Ichigo was too stunned to say anything. Love, Lisa, Hacchi, Rose, Kensei, Mashiro – all of the vaizards had been defeated, all except for Shinji, Hiyori and Ichigo himself of course.

The terrifying part?

It had only been half an hour.

Yes, it had been half an hour since Hitsugaya had been forced into his current subconscious mode and started training. At first, his battle with Love seemed to get along pretty fine, until Hitsugaya suddenly went berserk, of course. That seemed to be the nature of hollows; to go berserk at times. Then the other vaizards had no choice but to enter the barrier all in one big group – and it took the mindless Hitsugaya fifteen minutes to defeat such a big group. All in all, it had only been half an hour.

"Shinji is right…" Ichigo admitted. "Maybe this kind of method won't work for Toushirou…"

He felt someone touch his shoulder and turned his head, only to see a grim Shinji next to him. "Told ya, didn't I?" Shinji sighed. "Looks like I have no choice. Ichigo, it's yer turn ta' fight 'im."

"What?!" Ichigo would be caught dead fighting someone like that! "Are you crazy?!"

"'Ey, yer a vaizard too, y'know," Shinji replied casually. "Fightin' lil' trainees is what ya should do, like the rest o' us."

"I didn't say I became a part of your vaizard gang!"

"But yer still a vaizard, and yer right here, ain't ya?" Ichigo went silent. Shinji sighed again. "I know yer feelin' bad 'cos ya have ta' fight yer friend, but it's inevitable when yer a vaizard."

True, Ichigo didn't want to fight Hitsugaya because he treated Hitsugaya as his friend. Memories of him and Hitsugaya together played endlessly in his head. He remembered when he first called Hitsugaya by name and Hitsugaya kept on pestering him to call him 'taichou' instead of his given name. Ichigo didn't really have a reason why he called Hitsugaya by his given name, just that he felt like it. It was weird. Perhaps it was because Ichigo felt that he and Hitsugaya would be friends. Ichigo sighed. "Okay, I'll do it."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"What?! It's actually gotten _**this **_serious?!"

Shinji nodded grimly at Hinamori's statements. Hinamori felt like she was going to burst out in tears any moment then. Her hands trembled; her body felt weak. She slumped in her chair in a daze, scaring Rukia and Renji. Merenaito's eyes narrowed to slits. Kage, on the other hand, was in a daze like Hinamori, except that she was pretty much more under control. Meian couldn't stop her heart from racing.

"Where's Ichigo?" Rukia asked worriedly, hoping that Ichigo wasn't doing what she thought he was doing.

Unfortunately, he was. "He's out there, battlin' Hitsugaya-san."

It was Rukia's turn to nearly cry after hearing Shinji's reply.

She rushed down the staircase immediately with the others following her slowly.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

**Clank!**** Clank! Clank!**

The sound of the blades hitting against each other echoed throughout the entire training grounds. Ichigo was forced to leap out of the way due to the reiatsu impact of the blades and landed on his feat, dragging them. Hitsugaya was prepared to charge towards him, zanpakutou ready in hand, but Ichigo shunpo-ed away in time and appeared behind of Hitsugaya. Hitsugaya grinned and shunpo-ed away as well. Ichigo looked around his surroundings for the subconscious hollowfied white-haired prodigy. He had already known this did not bode well right from the start.

After all, the current reiatsu level of Hitsugaya was enough to force Ichigo into bankai once he entered the barrier.

**Clank!**

Ichigo managed to defend himself from Hyourinmaru's blade with Zangetsy's blade. He saw Hitsugaya shunpo-ing away again and tried to follow his reiatsu. Ichigo raised Zangetsu into the air, yelling as he proceeded to land a hit on where he felt Hitsugaya's fluctuated reiatsu, but all he had managed to hit was dust. On his back, he felt a cold and numbing cut forming and the fresh warm blood dripping from his new wound. Hitsugaya had landed a successful hit.

Ichigo panted from the painful injury. It was cold as ice but it was warmed up by the fresh blood gushing out of the wound. It was ironic, really. A blade freezing cold able to slice its enemies and draw out warm blood from them… Ichigo was one example and he wasn't happy about it. He got into a ready stance. If he were to let his guard down, Hitsugaya would be able to take the chance and cut him up, beating the crap out of him, just like what he did to the other vaizards. Of course, Ichigo didn't want to end up like them. He charged towards Hitsugaya with Zangetsu in hand and Hitsugaya did the same with Hyourinmaru.

**CLANK!**

Wild reiatsu emitted from the impact of the two powerful zanpakutous traveled in all kinds of directions. Ichigo was giving Hitsugaya a nice glare. The other was smiling the trademark hollow grin. The two jumped away from each other, dragging their feet and gathering dust. Ichigo noticed the ice on Hitsugaya's body already covering the entire torso and back. Now wings of ice were starting to form in his back, just like Hyourinmaru's bankai form. Ichigo's eyes narrowed. Was this Hitsugaya's full hollow form forming?

"Ichigo!"

Ichigo's eyes widened at the voice. He turned quickly and saw Rukia running towards the barrier. The raven-haired girl was nearly on the brink of tears, which was totally unlike the strong-willed Rukia he knew. Ichigo blinked in confusion. "Rukia?"

"Ichigo, you idiot of an idiot!" Rukia scolded, banging her hand against the barrier in anger. "Why are you fighting him?! You saw what happened to the others; I don't want the same to happen to you!"

Ichigo was at a loss for words. Had he really meant so much to Rukia? If Byakuya learnt about this, Ichigo was dead meat. "Rukia, if I don't do this, who will stop him if he manages to break out?! There's no telling what he can do at this stage!" Before Rukia could reply, Ichigo got slashed at his chest by Hitsugaya, forming multiple gashes on his chest.

As Ichigo stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, blood dripping continuously, Rukia was screaming Ichigo's name. By that time, everyone had caught up to Rukia who was kneeling on her knees, watching the battle kneeling next to the barrier. Ichigo cursed under his breath as he tried to stand up, only to get slashed again. Rukia shed a tear as Ichigo crashed against the barrier, coughing out more blood. Using Zangetsu as his support, Ichigo knelt down, panting heavily. Then he stood up, knowing that he couldn't be distracted anymore than he was already. The barrier was beginning to lose its power.

"Crap shit! The barrier's gonna break again!" Hiyori shouted, watching as the barrier began to lose its color.

Kage stretched out her arm calmly, stopping anyone behind her who attempted to fix the barrier. "Don't bother. I shall go fix it."

"Are ya sure ya can do it, Kage? I mean, even if yer a capt'n, ya'd need ta' be awfully skilled at kidou ta' be able ta' sustain it fer so long," Shinji commented casually, shrugging his shoulders.

Kage turned to face him. Her smile sent shivers up his spine. The ironic part: he's a vaizard, and she's a shinigami. Note that vaizards are _**half-hollows**_. "I _**am **_skilled at kidou. You want to see proof? I'll show you right here, right now."

Kage proceeded to shunpo off towards the barrier. When she appeared, Rukia looked up at her confusedly. "Kage…?"

"Don't speak, Rukia. I'll need full concentration for this." Even though Rukia didn't know what Kage had meant by that, she obeyed anyway and kept silent. Kage held out her arms, palms resting against the barely visible barrier. She closed her diamond-like eyes, brows furrowing in concentration as the barrier she was touching began to regain its color. It glowed brightly just as Ichigo got smashed into it again. Ichigo was too busy fighting to even realize that Kage was supporting the barrier. Everyone else, except Merenaito, Meian and Hinamori, were pretty much amazed that Kage could support the barrier. Kage opened her eyes and removed her hands, sitting down next to Rukia. "Well, until the barrier gets weak again, I might as well sit here in case that moment comes anytime soon. You don't mind, do you, Rukia?"

"No, I don't mind," Rukia managed to mutter out. "Um, Kage, how were you able to do that? To make the barrier stronger, you needed at least the incantation, but you didn't need to say it just now… How did you do that?"

"Like I said, we'll wait until all of this is over, Rukia," came Kage's simple reply.

"…All right." Just as those words left her lips, she heard Ichigo's painful yelp as he got smashed into the barrier yet again. "Ichigo!" Ichigo stood up as he coughed out blood. He wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve and proceeded to charge towards Hitsugaya again. This time, instead of colliding with the blade like what Ichigo did before, Hitsugaya managed to shunpo away before Ichigo could slice at him. He then re-appeared behind the orange-haired vaizard and slashed his back. More blood spilled out. "Ichigo! Don't stay in there anymore! You'll get yourself killed!" Rukia screamed.

Ichigo, being Ichigo, was too stubborn to heed her advice and continued fighting. He tried slashing at the hollowfied Hitsugaya once more, only to be slashed by the other on the torso and limbs. Ichigo lost much more blood than he expected. He leaned against the barrier for support, panting heavily. "Well, I guess I have no choice," Ichigo muttered to himself as he placed his hand on his face, raising his reiatsu level.

"Ichigo, what are you…?"

"He's gonna hafta bring out his mask," Shinji answered Rukia's question. "Looks like the kid's hollow _**is **_too strong fer 'im. If it were me, I'd hafta bring out my mask too."

"Hitsugaya-kun's hollow is actually _**that **_strong?" Hinamori asked.

"Yep. I gotta admit; that kinda hollow is nearly ten times as powerful as mine or Ichigo's," Hiyori admitted, watching the battle.

"T-ten times?"

"Even if Ichigo were to bring out his mask, it ain't 'nuff ta' bring that kid's hollow down. If this keeps up, Shinji an' I will hafta go in there ta'gether."

By then, Ichigo's mask was already covering his entire face. Hoping that he would be able to stay in that form for enough time to weaken Hitsugaya just a little, Ichigo charged towards him at blinding speed.

**Clank!**

The blades met again. Sparks could be seen from the blades' impact as the reiatsu was getting strong. Hyourinmaru was about to break when Hitsugaya managed to jump out of the way, surprising Ichigo with his sudden movement. This gave Hitsugaya the chance to pry the mask of Ichigo with Hyourinmaru's blade, and the mask broke instead, revealing a very shocked Ichigo. Hitsugaya shoved Hyourinmaru's blade into Ichigo's chest, causing Rukia to scream his name worriedly while Renji was too stunned to speak. With a grin, Hitsugaya pulled Hyourinmaru out, drawing blood. Ichigo fell to the ground, surrounded by a pool of his own blood.

Then, _**it **_happened.

Hitsugaya's reiatsu began to fluctuate greatly, most likely due to the fact that his inner hollow was getting closer and closer to the victory of the inner war, and the air within the barrier began to freeze up. Even the barrier was going to become a wall of ice. Kage stood up and tried supporting the barrier again, and ended up being successful in helping the barrier regain its color. A pair of dragon wings made of ice immediately sprouted out from Hitsugaya's back and the tail formed quickly, just like in bankai. However, it was a bigger version of the bankai form.

Hitsugaya had the Hyourinmaru-like mask of ice covering his face, and frost was beginning to form on his snow white hair. A thick coat of ice covered his limbs, forming extremely sharp dragon claws. Another thick coat of ice covered his entire torso and back. The ice was so thick that it was nearly impossible to see the shihakushou Hitsugaya was wearing on the inside. The wings were generally larger than the ones in bankai form, most probably about three times the normal size. The tail itself was about twice as long as the tail in bankai form.

The rapid change in his reiatsu forced Ichigo to look up at the ice dragon forming right before his eyes. He grabbed Zangetsu which was lying next to him on the ground and promptly jumped away despite his injuries. The reiatsu level was so great that Ichigo couldn't breathe and it didn't help that a mini blizzard was occurring within the barrier. Before he knew it, Hyourinmaru collided with Zangetsu which Ichigo managed to use to defend himself just in the nick of time.

**Clank!**

"Shit!" Ichigo cursed, defending himself from yet another attack of Hyourinmaru's.

**Clank!**

"Shit!"

**Clank!**

"Shit!"

**Clank!**

"Shit!"

Rukia didn't know how to feel; pissed off or worried. "Stop cursing, Ichigo!" she scolded, the tears beginning to form in her eyes. Any longer and Ichigo might…!

"I can't help it!" Ichigo turned to face the dragon mask staring back at him with black eyes and strange ice blue irises. "If this keeps up, Toushirou's gonna… He's gonna…"

Before Ichigo could say anymore, Hitsugaya cut Zangetsu in half (A/N: o.O) and thrust Hyourinmaru into Ichigo's chest once more, hoping that that would deal the final hit. "ICHIGO!" Rukia shouted, not being able to bear it any longer. The tears began to stream down her cheeks. Hitsugaya pulled a blood-stained Hyourinmaru out of Ichigo's chest, causing the limp body to fall dramatically with blood gushing out of his wounds. Another pool of Ichigo's blood formed. Ichigo's eyes closed as he coughed out more blood. "ICHIGO!"

"Ichigo!" Renji shouted.

"K-Kurosaki-kun!" Hinamori shouted this time.

"Ichigo…" Meian muttered softly.

"…" Merenaito didn't say anything and looked away from the bloody sight.

"That… that strawberry…" Kage whispered sadly.

"It's a very dangerous stage now, it is," Hiyori spoke, folding her arms. "If this keeps up, that kid's full hollow form is gonna manifest quicker than ours did. It's already been an hour. We don't have much time on our hands."

"Yep, I agree," Shinji replied. "We'd better take care of this before this entire place gets destroyed, eh?" Hiyori grunted in reply, getting ready for a fight.

"All of the vaizards except you and Hiyori have been knocked out, Shinji," Merenaito spoke softly, gaining the two remaining vaizards' attention. Merenaito's eyes darkened. "Do you think you need some extra help?"

Shinji shrugged. "Nah, it'd be great an' all, but no thanks. Thanks for offering anyway."

"No, I think…" Hinamori spoke this time, gaining everyone's attention. Tears dripped from her eyes. "I think you could really need some help…" Hinamori looked in the direction of the hollowfied Hitsugaya and felt her heart sink. "He needs us." She then turned to face Shinji. "He needs _**me**_."

By 'he', Hinamori was of course implying her childhood friend. Shinji hesitated for a while, then sighed, "'Kay, if ya say so. But if yer hurt or killed, don't blame us."

"_Arigatou, _Shinji-kun," Hinamori thanked, a smile finally put back on her face.

"Now, we'd better get Ichigo outta there before he gets sliced into half…"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Keep yo__ur hands off Toushirou!" Hyourinmaru rumbled, his voice raising a little. Upon hearing Hyourinmaru's voice, Hitsugaya blinked back into reality, snapping out of his hypnotic trance. Hyourinmaru backed away a little so that Koori couldn't reach them for a moment. "Don't force him with hypnotism, damn you."_

_Koori chuckled, "Heh. Zanpakutous and their wielders __**do **__share the same personality, after all. Both of you are stubborn in your own ways." He then unsheathed his zanpakutou, getting into a fighting stance. "All right, let's do it the boring way then. I think your butt would get kicked before you can even land a hit on me."_

"_I've said it before, Koori," Hyourinmaru growled. "I shall teach Toushirou everything he'll need to master bankai, and I don't care if it still ends up incomplete at the end of it all. As long as we can defeat you."_

"_Hyourinmaru…" Hitsugaya muttered in awe._

"_Hah! Is that all you have to say? Pa.the.tic!" Koori criticized, smirking triumphantly. "And I already told you, even if Toushirou manages to master bankai, he still won't be able to defeat me! Heck, I even doubt he can land a good hit on me!" Koori then swung his zanpakutou to show off a little. "But of course, I'm a nice guy, you see. So I'll give you a little present." Koori jumped up high in the air and spun his zanpakutou around. A snowstorm began to brew and the temperature dropped considerably. "I'll show you the true power of Hyourinmaru's bankai!" The entire body of Koori got encased in an ice cage immediately. A dragon-like mask covered his face, and his entire torso got covered in a thick layer of ice. A pair of giant dragon-like wings formed on his back, as well as an outrageously long dragon tail. Hitsugaya's eyes widened. Hyourinmaru's as well, though it wasn't so obvious._

"_This is…!" Hitsugaya gasped. "This is… Daiguren Hyourinmaru, isn't it?"_

"_It is," Hyourinmaru replied. "However, this is the true form of it. Toushirou, you are young, so you have yet to master bankai. Therefore, you have not seen the mastered form. __**This **__is what happens after you manage to master bankai, Toushirou. You gain a fuller form and it's more dragon-like in appearance. Ryuusenka and Sennen Hyourou are thus boosted in power, and you have another ability too."_

"_So… Koori managed to master bankai? Is that even possible?"_

_A wave of ice was sent flying towards him, knocking him off Hyourinmaru's back. "Toushirou!" Hyourinmaru flew back down and caught Hitsugaya just in time before colliding with the snowy grounds. Koori appeared hovering above them, and underneath his mask, he was smiling sadistically._

"_Du-uh, it's possible. Look at me," Koori replied casually, still smiling. "In case you want to know how it's possible for me to master Daiguren Hyourinmaru, I'll tell you. See, the thing is, the true form of Daiguren Hyourinmaru is the exact same form of the full hollow form. The catch? __**I'm **__the hollow around here," Koori ended with a chuckle. "You want to master bankai?" Sending another wave of ice towards the twosome below him, he shouted, "Only when you accept me, Toushirou!"_

_Hyourinmaru evaded the wave of ice which, in turn, hit against the snowy grounds, causing a small 'snow explosion': snow splattered everywhere, leaving a charred spot in the ground with no snow at all. Hitsugaya cringed. If that had hit them, they'd be charred too. Hitsugaya turned to face Koori, giving his hollow a cold glare. "Why should I, other than managing to master bankai?"_

_Koori narrowed his eyes at the comment. He swung his zanpakutou, calling upon its new ability, "Hyouketsu Kaze!" A strong wave of ice was sent flying towards Hitsugaya, threatening to hit him square on the chest. Hitsugaya winced in pain as he clutched his wound. Hyourinmaru immediately flew away from Koori, but Koori followed wherever he went. "What's wrong? New ability too numbing for you to handle?" Koori taunted, smiling. "All I ask is for you to acknowledge me, Toushirou! Is that too much for you?!"_

"_Of course it is!" Hitsugaya shouted back, still clutching his chest. It felt strangely numb and cold. It wasn't as painful as it was before, but still… "If I were to fully turn into a hollow, you'd go on a rampage and destroy Soul Society! And I won't be able to stop you if that happens! I'm __**not **__going to let myself go down like that!"_

"_Toushirou, you… you __**BAKA**__! Hyouketsu Kaze!" Koori exclaimed as another wave of ice hit Hitsugaya's back, causing it to bleed a little. Hitsugaya hissed. "Accepting and acknowledging me won't bring you anything bad! In turn, I'll be able to help you in the upcoming winter war!"_

"_I won't believe you, Koori! You were created from the Hougyoku after all; who knows if you're actually helping Aizen?!" Hitsugaya telepathically told Hyourinmaru to fly faster._

"_You don't understand! Damn you, Toushirou! Don't you remember me?!"_

"_Well, yeah, you're a perfectly insane inner hollow who is too dangerous to be let out!"_

"_No! I meant, before all of this happened…" Now it got Hitsugaya's attention. Hyourinmaru slowed down a little. Koori continued, "You… you saved me."_

_Hitsugaya turned to face Koori. "What…?" he breathed. "I… I saved you?" Seeing Koori nod slowly, Hitsugaya blinked then glared. "I don't believe you. Hyourinmaru, fly up to the frozen heavens!"_

_Koori blinked. That sounded very ironic. He continued to give chase anyway. "If you won't believe me, then fine! Stay as a damned hollow, for all I care! You want to become a hollow so badly, you should've just said so, you dimwit! Then I wouldn't need to have to go through all this trouble to fight you!"_

_Hitsugaya turned to face him yet again. Inquisitive teal eyes met fuming sapphire eyes. "What do you mean?"_

"_Oh, you want to know? Too bad! You refuse to remember me at all, Toushirou, and it cut me. It cut me real deep, you know that? Why should I tell you?!"_

_Hitsugaya was taken aback. He had never seen Koori this hurt before. "But… But you just appeared out of nowhere for no reason, and you look like me and claim to be me and…" His eyes widened, his heart thumping wildly. It wasn't possible. It wasn't possible. It __**wasn't**__. "Y-you're…!"_

"_Oh, so you remember now, do you? Too late, Toushirou!" Koori slashed at Hitsugaya, causing Hitsugaya to hiss in pain again. Fresh blood dripped from his new wounds. Koori's body thrust out of the full hollow form. "You've hurt me, Toushirou. I didn't think you had the heart to."_

"_K-Koori, you…" Koori kicked Hitsugaya off Hyourinmaru and in turn, stabbed the ice dragon to prevent him from rescuing Hitsugaya from falling over and over again. Hyourinmaru howled in pain and Koori sealed him with a bakudou spell. He jumped down, following the falling Hitsugaya and gripped his collar. "Koori, why are you doing this to me? Why are you assuming my appearance? Why…?"_

"_Your questions will be answered in due time, Toushirou."_

"_B-but… You… Your zanpakutou… You said you don't remember anything… How… How are you going to be able to answer my questions?"_

_Koori smirked. "Who said __**I **__am going to be the one doing the answering?" The two then collided into the snow on the ground. They sat up, Koori's hands still gripping onto Hitsugaya's collar. "And yes, it's true that I don't remember anything."_

"_Koori, do you at least remember your zanpakutou's real name?" Hitsugaya asked curiously._

_Koori scoffed, "Well, Toushirou, unfortunately for you, I __**do **__remember my zanpakutou's __**real **__name, but I don't think you're worthy to even learn it." Koori tossed Hitsugaya to one side._

_Hitsugaya found no strength to stand up. He stayed there, lying on the soft snow. "You're saying like as if I'm going to be wielding it," Hitsugaya muttered out coldly._

"_Because you __**will.**__"_

_Hitsugaya's eyes widened. He had already wielded Hyourinmaru; now he was going to wield Koori's zanpakutou? There was no way he could wield two zanpakutous, unless he… "Are you saying…?"_

"_Yes. Ukitake and Kyouraku aren't the only ones who have twin zanpakutous, Toushirou. __**You're **__the third one to wield twins," Koori explained, beginning to unsheathe his zanpakutou._

"_How is that possible?!"_

"_Well, it is, Toushirou," Koori replied bluntly, taking a step closer to the white-haired prodigy. "It's a matter of whether or not you want to believe it." Koori held up his zanpakutou high up in the air, raising his reiatsu level. "Now…" He emitted a white aura and the blizzard in the dreamscape began to die down, providing a nice cool breeze. The shihakushou flew along with the calm breeze. The zanpakutou in hand glowed white as well, and the black blade turned into an ordinary katana's blade color. The guard and hilt became pure white. The guard, in place of the star-shaped one, became a little flower bud that looked like as if it was clinging onto the end of the blade, unwilling to open its petals. Koori brought down his zanpakutou, gripping its hilt with both of his hands. Closing his eyes, Koori whispered, but loud enough for Hitsugaya to hear, "Let us witness the true release of my zanpakutou."_

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A/N: This is a long chapter, whew. I managed to complete it before school re-opens. Yay! Wait, noooooooooooo!!! I DON'T WANT TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL!!!

Hyouketsu Kaze – freezing wind, according to the Jap-Eng dictionary I refer to. Hyouketsu is freezing and kaze is wind. It sends a strong wave of ice and snow towards the enemy and strikes the enemy with great accuracy. It can also give a nasty case of frostbite.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_This… is the power of __**my **__zanpakutou!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hyourinmaru, I… I'm going to have to trust Koori on this one."_

"… _I understand. No matter what happens to you, Toushirou, I shall always be with you, as the extension of your soul."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Koori, teach__ me. Teach me everything I need to know about your zanpakutou!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I promise you, Toushirou, I'm not going to try anything funny anymore."_

"_Koori…?"_

"_I'm tired of all this, Toushirou… I'm tired…"_

"_You're… tired…?"_

"_I'm exhausted… I'm worn out… I… can't… take this anymore… Take care of her for me, Toushirou… She's all yours now…"_

"_Koori… Koori! Koori, wake up! Koori!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I, Hitsugaya Toushirou, hereby declare that I accept and acknowledge Hitsugaya Koorimasu as my…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

…Is it just me, or are there more and more previews with every chapter? XD

Anyway, the last bit of the preview was purposely cut off because if I reveal it, it's gonna spoil the later parts of the story, and I can't have that. Besides, this _**is **_Mystery!

Oh yes, before I forget, this chapter has a few references to the prequel which, regrettably, is not posted yet. It is currently being carefully planned out so be a little bit patient.

Please review! I want to see at least 5 nice reviews at the end of this week! Coz I gotta go back to school and I'm banned from the computer on weekdays except Friday and weekends so I want to see at least 5 nice reviews that will brighten me up at the end of this week when I finally get access to the com!

So, please…? (puppy dog eyes)


	11. 十一　じゅういち

Author's Note: I'm writing this in a rush so if you find it crappy, please don't blame me. I got to wake up early tomorrow morning for an important activity but I also want to update as quickly as possible so if this is abysmal work, please don't blame me.

And thank you so so so so much for all the sweet reviews!

I made a slight mistake in the translation for Koori's name. Koori means ice, while Koorimasu means to freeze. There'll be translations provided for zanpakutou release commands, zanpakutou names and zanpakutou abilities. Of course, if you know the correct form of saying it, you can tell me. I'm always happy to have some advice on Jap stuff. And there are also different ways of saying the same things, so I'll be using different ways too.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 11 – Behold! The Beauty of Koori's Zanpakutou

_The winds in the dreamscape gathered together quickly as the strangely powerful snow blew in Hitsugaya's face, leaving behind small traces on his young facial features as well as his hair and shihakushou. Hyourinmaru managed to break free of Koori's bakudou due to the fact that Koori was too immersed in the matters of his mysteriously cold zanpakutou. The dragon of ice flew down beside the white-haired prodigy who was too awed to sp__eak. Koori was in a ready stance and holding his zanpakutou at waist level. Slowly bringing it up till the hilt was at chest level and the blade, standing proud and tall, Koori closed his eyes as if concentrating hard on calling upon the name of his zanpakutou. Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru watched with suspense high in the air surrounding them._

"_Fuyu ni sakimasu…" Sapphire eyes opened__ dramatically. "Fuyu no Hana."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Everyone stared at the fallen figure of the hollowfied body of Hitsugaya. The ice still remained, including the ice form of Hitsugaya, but for some strange reason, he had passed out, just like that. Renji, who was using bankai at that time, had a quizzical expression on his face. Rukia already had her share in the battling and it didn't end well for her so she was resting up in the warehouse, still unconscious. Hinamori, too, had been knocked out and was placed on a bed next to Rukia. Merenaito was reading her book and had to stop when she heard a thump which came from Hitsugaya falling to the ground, of course. Kage was making a report back to Soul Society and Meian was accompanying the unconscious Rukia and Hinamori. Shinji seemed a little bit taken aback as well while Hiyori took the time.

"Nah, can't count that as defeatin' his hollow," Hiyori commented, looking at her stopwatch. "Till he gets outta that ice thing, he's still tryin' ta' beat that hollow o' his."

Renji began dragging the limp body out of the barrier. "But… Why did this happen?" the pineapple head asked in confusion.

"Well, it's possible he an' his hollow are takin' it easy… I dunno," Shinji replied, shrugging. "This has never happened ta' us a'fore, so I ain't so sure 'bout what's up here." He then turned to Hiyori, leaving his answer like that. "Hiyori, how long has it been?"

"Eh…" Hiyori blinked before her golden eyes widened. "Three hours, sixteen minutes an' ten seconds! That's the longest time taken by any of us here!"

In a far corner, a curious Merenaito's eyes widened a little. She immediately shunpo-ed off to find Kage. Meanwhile, Shinji and Hiyori helped Renji carry the unconscious Hitsugaya into the warehouse. A trail of melted ice and snow followed as Hitsugaya's body was dragged along the ground, the ice water seeping into the very soil of the training grounds. At last, as they entered the warehouse and locked up the training grounds once more, a tiny little white sprout popped up from the ground. An even tinier flower bud could be seen. A few more sprouts followed till they formed the shape of the trail that Hitsugaya's ice had left.

It was truly a strange phenomenon.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Hitsugaya covered his eyes while he and Hyourinmaru nearly got blown away by the sheer force of the blizzard winds which occurred once the inner hollow had finished releasing his zanpakutou, Fuyu no Hana. Hidden in the blanket of snow, Koori zipped __past the two unsuspecting spiritual beings and slashed Hitsugaya's back while they weren't looking. Hitsugaya gave a yelp of pain as he stumbled forward and landed against Hyourinmaru's scales. Panting heavily, Hitsugaya clenched his fists, his nails digging into his skin lightly. Hyourinmaru asked if he was alright. Hitsugaya merely gave a grunt before he felt another slash on his back, this time even colder and more painful than before. Hitsugaya suppressed the pain, not wanting his zanpakutou spirit to worry. Finally, the two felt the winds die down, and before them stood the pale white Koori, smirking a little, and – was that Sode no Shirayuki in his hand?_

"_Sode no Shirayuki…?" Hitsugaya muttered out rather weakly, suddenly remembering the zanpakutou of Rukia. This zanpakutou that Koori was holding onto looked exactly like that Kuchiki girl's zanpakutou; Hitsugaya could recognize it even if it were from a distance. After all, he and Rukia have had several practice sessions together since both their zanpakutous were of the same element. However, the one Koori held also didn't look like Sode no Shirayuki for some reason. It could be because it looked translucent; Hitsugaya could see through it though it wasn't very clear.__ Moreover, Kuchiki's released zanpakutou had a ribbon of some sort trailing behind it, but Koori's zanpakutou had none. The bud-like guard from its sealed state had 'bloomed' into a beautiful white flower with the long majestic blade coming out of it, like the stamen of a male flower. It was truly a magnificent sight, this zanpakutou of Koori's._

"_Well, it looks like it, doesn't it, Toushirou?" Koori gave a small chuckle as a hint of amusement. "That's what I'd expect you to say. Of course, this isn't Sode no Shirayuki, as you can see. There are many differences in the two white zanpakutous, mainly the difference in power." Hitsugaya nearly gulped as Koori continued in a low voice, "Now I shall show you the reason why you should fear Fuyu no Hana."_

_Instantly, as if they were just waiting for him to finish saying that, the winds picked up speed once more and transformed back into a raging blizzard. Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru, however, got blown away literally this time, and landed on their backs, gasping for air. They could see the dark gloomy skies of the heavens above them, and lightning flashes all over the place. The winds got even more violent with every passing second, leaving Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru choking a little. It became so cold; too cold for even them to handle but Koori seemed unmoved and indifferent._

_Who __**was **__this… this abnormality before them?_

"_This…" Koori spoke, raising his zanpakutou high up in the air as if he was showing it off. "is the power of __**my **__zanpakutou!" The snow stopped raging at once. The two choking spiritual beings felt oxygen returning to their lungs as they sat up weakly and watched the snow moving… backwards? No, the snow wasn't just moving backwards. It was moving towards Koori, and all the snow gathered together, spinning around him like a merry-go-round. Koori closed his eyes and spun his zanpakutou around. He placed the free hand on the hilt and let the other hand go. Making the zanpakutou move one round, he again placed the now free hand on the hilt and let the other hand go. In this repetition of spinning, Koori himself spun his body around. The snow followed his every spin; his every direction of his spins. Hitsugaya was too amazed to speak. It was such a beautiful sight! Hyourinmaru couldn't help but agree._

_Suddenly, Koori stopped spinning, causing rising confusion from the two dragons. The snow stopped spinning as well, but unlike ordinary snow which would fall to the ground, the snow surrounding Koori hung in mid-air, like as if time had stopped for it and it alone. Koori's eyes fluttered open, and he pointed his zanpakutou's blade towards them."Yuki no Kirimomijoutai!" With the command, time resumed for the snow and it moved towards Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru at blinding speed. The two became engulfed in the snow storm once more, except that they were now caught in an extremely violent and frigid blizzard. The winds were so strong that they were blown off their feet again, and got carried to wherever the winds took them. "Oi! Toushirou! Hyourinmaru! You'd better listen up!" Koori shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth to echo his voice. "You've seen what Fuyu no Hana can do, but this isn't all! You hear me? It's not all! You want to regain control? You'd better master Fuyu no Hana first! I'll be standing here whenever you need me! You hear?!"_

_The two figur__es of Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru had already faded away into the skies._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Toushirou, are you well?" Hyourinmaru asked concernedly, eyeing the white-haired genius snuggling up to the dragon for any warmth possible. They had landed in an unknown part of__ the never ending dreamscape, but found a nearby ice cave for them to reside in for the moment. Now Hitsugaya had a terrible cold, and as much as he hated to admit it, Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru couldn't hold a candle to Koori and Fuyu no Hana._

"_Peachy…" was all Hitsugaya said before sneezing._

"_Toushirou…" Hyourinmaru echoed a little, as if he were sighing. "Someday, you'll learn to lose that stubborn streak of yours and admit that you don't have enough power right now to defeat your enemy."_

_Hitsugaya grunted, "Hearing that from an extension of my soul…"_

_Hyourinmaru ignored that. "As part of you, Toushirou, I understand your feelings about this, but," Hyourinmaru paused while Hitsugaya sneezed. Then he continued, "But you're still young. There is much for you to learn. Maybe this is the chance for you to explore from deep within yourself. After all, in the end, you'll learn more about your limits and your true strength within."_

_Hitsugaya's eyes seemed to have softened at that comment. He brought his legs closer to his chest and leaned his head against Hyourinmaru's scaly body. The ice dragon nearly gave a chuckle. Hitsugaya Toushirou was finally acting like a child. Hitsugaya muttered softly, "Hyourinmaru, I… I'm going to have to trust Koori on this one."_

"…_I understand. No matter what happens to you, Toushirou, I shall always be with you, as the extension of your soul," Hyourinmaru replied supportively._

_For once, Hitsugaya looked up at his zanpakutou's spirit and smiled. "Arigatou, Hyourinmaru."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Koori stared hard at the kneeling figure of Hitsugaya in front of him, his eyes narrowing at the very sight. His arms were folded and he was standing with pride, Fuyu no Hana sealed and perfectly strapped to his back. Hitsugaya felt a little bit rel__uctant to resort to begging, but he needed to learn everything, and __**fast**__. "Koori, teach me," Hitsugaya began. Koori remained indifferent. "Teach me everything I need to know about your zanpakutou!"_

"…_That's all you came to ask me for?" Koori finally asked after a moment of silence._

_Hitsugaya looked up in confusion. Why was Koori unusually calm about this? Shouldn't he be amused that he was right in front of him __**begging**__? Hitsugaya spoke anyway, "Yes. Of course. What else would I be here for?"_

_Koori gave him a strange look before turning, his back facing Hitsugaya. The cool snowy breeze caused their shihakushou to fly around mildly. "You know…" Koori breathed, his voice sounding weak all of a sudden. "There's no need for you to kneel like that. I'm not so cruel as to not pass down all the techniques of Fuyu no Hana. I can teach you when you're ready."_

_Hitsugaya regained his composure, the stoic expression back on his face. He stood up and was ready even though butterflies were churning in his stomach. "All right. I'll do it."_

_Koori tilted his head and gave Hitsugaya his trademark toothy grin. "That's what I like to hear."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The dainty white flowers began to bloom. Petal by petal, the buds bloomed into the white flowers that they were. Urahara Kisuke inspected the mysterious flowers which came from nowhere. He had been called in by Renji and of course sworn to secrecy about the hideout of the vaizards. Cooing, the straw hat man bent down and gave a flower a poke. The flower moved backwards before moving back to its original position. Right before his eyes, another bloomed, and then another. The flowers were blooming at rapid speed; it was strange yet beautiful. "Urahara-san," Renji began, bending down a little to have a look at the flowers as well. "From what you can see, why are there flowers blooming in this place?"

Urahara smiled and stood up, stretching his back. "You have a point, Abarai-kun. There's too much heat here and too little water for plants to live. However, I think that these aren't just ordinary flowers."

"Aren't ordinary?" Renji asked inquisitively.

"Hmm, yes. Touch one of these flowers, and tell me what you feel," instructed Urahara. Renji shrugged and obliged. He knelt down and gave a flower a mild poke like what Urahara did. A tingling sensation flowed through his body starting from the finger which poked the flower. Renji's eyes widened.

"This… this is…"

"Yes. These flowers give off a peculiar kind of reiatsu that not even I am able to identify. To solve this mystery of the white flowers, you'll have to seek the co-operation of a true reiatsu and kidou expert," Urahara admitted, scratching the back of his head, a little embarrassed that he wasn't of any help.

"I understand, Urahara-san. Do you know of anyone who is a reiatsu and kidou expert?" Renji enquired, eager to solve this mystery before solving Hitsugaya's problem.

Urahara's eyes gave a glint in amusement and cheerfulness. "Why, yes I do! In fact, she is also the leader of the Kidou Corps, so I've heard."

"T-the leader… of the Kidou Corps?" Renji gulped. The Kidou Corps might not be very revealing about their work, but they had revealed enough to be feared. The Kidou Cannon was intimidating enough. The (new) leader must be really petrifying. "Wasn't there a new one?"

"I'm not so sure about the details in Soul Society right now, but if you say that there's a new one, then there is a new one."

"And so, who might that person be?"

Urahara smiled, assuring Renji that the person was very close to them. Urahara tilted his head and shouted, his voice echoing throughout the narrow hallway of the staircase, "Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh, Kage dear, would you mind coming down here for a second?"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Hitsugaya attempted spinning the unfamiliar zanpakutou in his grasp as he tried to copy what Koori had demonstrated before. It wasn't as easy as it seemed, for Hitsugaya kept on tripping on his own foot, and even missed grabbing the hilt of Fuyu no __Hana sometimes. Koori watched with amusement, sitting Indian-style on the snowy grounds. Occasionally, Koori would slap his forehead when Hitsugaya tripped and fell face flat on the snow and Koori would have to correct Hitsugaya's mistakes. "Toushirou, you have to relax. Don't be so tensed, or else Fuyu no Hana gets too tensed up as well and won't be able to perform well."_

"_I'll try, Koori," Hitsugaya sighed, getting back up on his feet._

"_Remember, relax. This technique wasn't so difficult to master when it came to me. Imagine yourself dancing in the snow…" Hitsugaya imagined, but didn't want to describe it. "The snow drifts around you slowly but beautifully, and as you spin, you feel like you become one with Fuyu no Hana. That's the key to using this technique well; the feeling that you've become one in both spirit and mind with Fuyu no Hana."_

_Hitsugaya sighed deeply. "I… I'll try, Koori." Hitsugaya resumed spinning and spun Fuyu no Hana along with him. The snow gathered and spun along with him. Koori watched again, his arms folded across his chest, but on his face was a contented smile. As Hitsugaya spun and spun, he felt the feeling Koori told him: to become one with Fuyu no Hana. Hitsugaya felt the cold sensation on his fingers where he held Fuyu no Hana's hilt; he felt the numbness clutching his ribcage and his chest; he felt comfort from the sight of snow. When he decided to stop spinning, he tried remembering the name of the ability and muttered out, a little unsure, "Yuki no Kirimomijoutai?" The snow became a snowstorm instantly, blasting the big piles of snow in the background into tiny bits of splattered snow._

_Koori walked up to Hitsugaya and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Now, on to the next one…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Panting heavily and letting himself fall on hi__s back with an exhale, Hitsugaya's entire being was trembling with fear, excitement and utter happiness, although he couldn't show his emotions in any other way except trembling. With a deep contented sigh, Hitsugaya breathed, "… We did it." Hearing no reply from his counterpart, Hitsugaya repeated, "We did it. We did it, Koori. We did it. We managed to go through every single technique of Fuyu no Hana." Koori still didn't reply, but Hitsugaya could feel Koori's reiatsu right next to him. Tilting his head a little to have a look, all he saw was the small figure of Koori wrapping himself up like as if he was in desperate need for warmth. Hitsugaya was stunned. "K-Koori…?"_

_Hitsugaya sat up, placing Fuyu no Hana next to him. He shook Koori slightly, but Koori didn't do anything to show that he noticed it. Bringing Koori up to his lap in a parental manner, Hitsugaya gasped at the sight. Koori was deathly pale, a whole lot paler than usual. A tinge of green mixed with a bright shade of red stained his cheeks and he was shaking like a leaf. Not being able to resist his actions, Hitsugaya hugged him to provide him with the warmth he really needed. "Koori, what's wrong…?"_

_Not expecting a reply, Hitsugaya was surprised to hear one. "I promise you, Toushirou," Koori whispered, his voice very soft and very weak. "I'm not going to try anything funny anymore."_

_Hitsugaya was confused. What was Koori saying? "Koori…?"_

_Not giving Hitsugaya the chance to say anything, Koori continued, "I'm tired of all this, Toushirou… I'm tired…" Anytime now, and Koori would succumb to a deep sleep. He knew it. He knew it was going to end like this._

_Hitsugaya blinked. "You're… tired…?"_

_Koori nodded, his quick puffs of breaths coming out in the form of mist. "I'm exhausted…" Koori sighed. "I'm worn out… I… can't… take this anymore…" Straining to open his already vacant sapphire eyes, Koori pointed at the blade of Fuyu no Hana, his arm trembling. "Take care of her for me, Toushirou…" It was then Hitsugaya realized that Fuyu no Hana was a female. But it wasn't time to be surprised. It was time to be worried. Koori cracked a small smile, his grip on his shihakushou weakening. His eyelids became heavier and heavier, and his vision blurred tremendously. He thought he was going to go blind in an instant. "She's all yours now…" Koori finished with a final tear sliding from the corner of his eye as it closed. The boy's head rested against Hitsugaya's chest, and his breath came out in the form of a very large and long mist._

_Hitsugaya resisted the urge to cry. He would __**not **__cry. He would __**not**__. "__Koori…" Hitsugaya called out softly, not wanting it to be true. "Koori! Koori, wake up! Koori!" Shaking the limp body violently, Hitsugaya continued shouting his name helplessly, even though he knew that Koori would never be revived. Giving up with a deep mournful sigh, Hitsugaya stood, Koori's body in his sturdy arms. Hitsugaya walked over to Fuyu no Hana and picked it up. As he proceeded to walk back to the cave, an ice blue phoenix appeared before him. Its flames were a deep shade of dazzling blue, and its entire body was tinted light blue. Its eyes were ice blue and it gave a dazzle with every flap of its majestic wings. Hitsugaya was so shocked that he dropped Fuyu no Hana._

"_Ouch," the phoenix muttered, landing on the snowy grounds. "Don't drop me like that. It hurts, you know?"_

_Hitsugaya's eyes widened in realization. "You're… Fuyu no Hana's spirit?"_

_The phoenix – Fuyu no Hana – nodded. "It's great to meet you, Toushirou. I've heard so much about you from my darling boy wielder."_

_Hitsugaya winced at the mentioning of Koori. Looking down at his body, Hitsugaya mumbled quietly, "Koori… He…"_

"_Yes, I know." Hitsugaya looked up. How could she be so calm even after her wielder was dead?! As if she read his mind, Fuyu no Hana continued, "It's the fate of all the heavenly guardians in the line. Perhaps after you've mastered both of your zanpakutous, Koori knew it'd be time to leave."_

"_Wait… Heavenly… Guardians?" Hitsugaya remembered when he had fought with Ichimaru, that foxy bastard. Now that she mentioned it, Ichimaru had said something familiar before. Something about the embodiment of a heavenly guardian that was said to come every few centuries?_

"_Koori was, or __**is**__, a heavenly guardian. Since he is here, in your mind," Fuyu no Hana smiled, if phoenixes could ever smile. "It would mean that you are truly the reincarnation of my little Koori."_

_Hitsugaya's eyes darted from Koori to himself then at Fuyu no Hana, then back at Koori again before looking at Fuyu no Hana again. "What? Me? Reincarnation? Koori? What…"_

"_Do not doubt yourself, Toushirou. Koori didn't exactly regain the memories of his past life as a human and heavenly guardian until he decided to remember my name. Which reminds me, thank you for triggering Koori's memories, Toushirou."_

"_Wha…?"_

"_You are the main reason why Koori fights. You are his resolve. You are the reason why he sought me out. Everything Koori does, it's because of you, Toushirou. He is grateful for what happened those few months ago, and so am I."_

"_T-this is…"_

"_This is too much for you to handle, is it not?" Fuyu no Hana gave another assuring smile, though it was more of an amused smile instead. "Fear not. It will all come to you once you manage to unlock the remaining of Koori's memories and original form."_

"_Unlock…?"_

"_Koori and I will explain everything once this is over. Now please, Koori's life is in your hands again."_

"_Again?"_

"_We'll explain later, Toushirou. Please, you have to hold your questions for now and save Koori's life!"_

"_B-but… how?"_

"_Ok, this is what you'll have to do…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_A-are… are you sure about this, Fuyu no Hana?" Hitsugaya asked, a little bit nervous._

"_Positive," came the reply from the ice phoenix. "This was how all the other heavenly guardians managed to unlock their previous incarnation's lives. You just need to say the magic words and Koori will be saved."_

_With a sigh, Hitsugaya had no choice but to oblige. Stretching his hands out like as if he was getting a kidou spell ready, his hands glowed a shade of ice blue as the body of Koori under the bright glow began to glow as well. __"I, Hitsugaya Toushirou," Hitsugaya began with a nervous pang. "hereby declare that I accept and acknowledge Hitsugaya Koorimasu as my…" Hitsugaya gulped at the last part, a little bit scared of the consequences. His hands were shaking and Fuyu no Hana's nudging didn't help ease his fear of Koori not being able to wake up ever again. Koori's body began floating. Seeing that, Hitsugaya decided to get it over and done with. With refreshed confidence, Hitsugaya ended, "…previous incarnation!"_

_A bright light engulfed the entire land, blinding Hitsugaya and Fuyu no Hana. Fuyu no Hana disintegrated, most probably going back into her blade. Hitsugaya covered his eyes, the light too blinding for him to handle. All he saw was a small figure with spiky hair rushing towards him before Hitsugaya knew no more._

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A/N: Yeah, I'm still in a rush… XD Is this chapter to your liking?

Fuyu ni sakimasu – Release command for Fuyu no Hana. It means 'bloom in winter'.

Fuyu no Hana – Winter Flower/Flower of Winter. Name is dedicated to my joint fic with Umbreon-Blue.

Yuki no Kirimomijoutai – One of the most beautiful techniques of Fuyu no Hana. It means 'snow spin'.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Tou-chan, you awake?"_

"_Ka…ge…?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_What the (beep)?! SCHOOL?!"_

"_Shut up, Renji!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Until __Toushirou can learn how to use the powers more properly, you'll have to make do with this arrangement."_

"_Ok, first of all, I didn't agree that I would attend school with you, Kurosaki. Second, who the hell said that I don't know how to use the hollow powers properly?!"_

"_Calm down, Toushirou. It's only till Soul Society allows you to go back."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Finally, I have found you, Key of the Hougyoku."_

"_E-Espada?!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Ok, give me comments of this chapter! I won't be able to update the next week again… Moan… But I will definitely try! Please give me all the feedback! Again, a simple request, 5 nice reviews and I'll be happy!

I'll try completing one other major fic I'm doing now. After that, I'll post the prequel so be a little bit more patient, and thanks!


	12. 十二　じゅうに

Author's Note: Thank you all for the sweet reviews! Oh, and just to let everyone know… September 15 2007, I solemnly celebrate the birthdays of Merenaito, Kage and Meian. Yes, they are fraternal triplets. No, they do not exist in reality. Well, they kinda do… But I won't elaborate much.

This is the list of the confirmed pairings. I apologise for any confusion. I promise, this is the final decision. I won't make any more changes, I swear.

Main pairings: HitsuHina, MatsuGin, IchiRuki

Shounen ai (Yaoi) pairings: HitsuIchi, HitsuAizen, AizenGin

Mild: HitsuMatsu

OC pairings: HitsuMerenaito, HitsuKage, HitsuKoori, ZarakiMeian, ByakuYuurei

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 12 – Hitsugaya's Struggle! School, Training and Ulquiorra

Kage looked up from the mobile phone at the unconscious childhood friend of hers. The others were all busy with their own things. Ichigo and Rukia, who woke up, had gone out shopping and Hinamori, who also woke up shortly after Rukia did, tagged along with them. Kage was a bit surprised that Hinamori didn't want to stay and accompany Hitsugaya, but she let it go in the end. All the other vaizards were busy with gawd-knows-what, and Kage wasn't interested in knowing what they were up to anyway so she let it slide as well. Renji was with Urahara in the training grounds downstairs to investigate the matter about the strange white flowers while Merenaito had gone to the library to find a good novel and dragged a reluctant and ultra hyper Meian with her as Merenaito wanted Meian to read something other than comic books. That left Kage with Hitsugaya. (A/N: This scene happened before Urahara called for Kage in chapter eleven)

Folding back the clamshell mobile phone she was provided with, Kage sighed a little. It was getting boring, sitting on the stool for several hours just to type out a report to Soul Society. Sometimes, she wondered why Soul Society provided the shinigami going to the material world mobile phones but never thought about putting up a secret webpage and typing out the report to them instead by – what did humans call them? – email. But sitting down there and complaining about it mentally wasn't going to do her any good, so she might as well go and find a kitchen, if there _**was **_one, and whip up a small snack for herself. After all, being in a gigai meant that she would 'function' like an ordinary human, so she got hungry gradually of course.

As Kage stood up from her stool and proceeded to walk out of the room, she heard a soft pained moan from behind her and a rapid drop in the reiatsu level. Turning around, she saw the ice encasing Hitsugaya beginning to melt away, revealing the shinigami form from within. She rushed to his side and couldn't help but hold onto his hand which was cold to the touch. "Tou-chan, you awake?" she asked, her voice high and soft.

Tired teal eyes strained to open up, and Hitsugaya found himself staring into sparkling diamond eyes. He opened his mouth to talk, but he couldn't find the voice to. After moments of opening and closing his mouth, his voice finally came up but it was neither strong nor deep. It had become soft, weak and raspy. "Ka…ge…?" was all Hitsugaya managed to whisper out before he felt his throat burning up.

Kage noticed the great change in the voice and moved her hand to his forehead. It was still ice cold, most probably since he was stuck within a cocoon of ice for such a long time, so she decided to take his temperature later. "How are you feeling?"

Hitsugaya closed his eyes and sighed, "Sore…"

Giving him a small forced smile, Kage stroked his snow white hair. Normally, when she would do that during their Shinigami Academy days, he'd push her hand away and retort that he wasn't a kid anymore. Now, he was too weak and tired to even move a muscle, let alone push her hand away. He _**did **_frown a little at the touch. Kage giggled instead, something that was quite rare to see the new 5th Division Captain do. Hitsugaya had the urge to stare hard at her for her giggle. Kage _**never **_giggled, unless he was with her.

Ignoring the giggle, Hitsugaya asked in a soft voice, "Is it over…?"

Kage stopped stroking his hair. "You should know better than anyone else does, Tou-chan."

Rolling his eyes with an exasperated sigh, Hitsugaya added, "It's not Tou-chan…"

Kage was about to reply when a voice from below shouted out to her, "Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh, Kage dear, would you mind coming down here for a second?" Kage blinked then sighed in frustration. Really, that pervert of a shopkeeper was starting to get on her nerves – and she only met him for half an hour!

"I got to go down there for a while, so be a good boy and have a nice little nap, okay, Tou-chan?" Kage spoke with a warm smile.

Hitsugaya finally found the strength to retort back with a glare, "Don't treat me like a kid."

Kage could only giggle at his comment and closed the door on her way out. Hitsugaya sighed once more and closed his eyes, letting darkness consume him for just a while longer.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Koori?" Hitsugaya called out into the vast open space that was forever cursed to bear the snow and blizzards for eternity. "Koori? Koori! Where are you?"_

"_Toushirou," a warm, light-hearted voice chirped. Hitsugaya spun around and saw the phoenix__ form of Fuyu no Hana. She was bending down for her beak to reach his height, and smoothly rubbed her beak against his numb face. "Do not worry. Koori shall be fine. He's just resting up in his room."_

_Hitsugaya nearly wanted to mutter out, "Hollows have rooms?" but as soon as he opened his mouth, nothing but a wisp of white mist came out, for he remembered that Koori wasn't just a hollow. Taking a deep sigh, Hitsugaya nodded his head in acknowledgement. "All right. Tell me when he's ready to talk to me about…some matters."_

"_I shall convey that message to him, so don't you worry, Toushirou."_

"_Thank you."_

_As Hitsugaya faded away from the dreamscape, the ice phoenix spirit disintegrated, and in her place, a young but tall girl with long pure white hair and ice blue eyes stood, wearing a snow white kimono with outlines of flowers all over her kimono. Blinking her large and beautiful ice blue eyes, Fuyu no Hana sighed, "I hate lying to the boy…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"What is it, Urahara?" Kage asked with a tinge of annoyance in her voice, walking down the stairs leading to the underground training grounds. Apparently, she was still in her gigai, wearing a white top and a black skirt, along with long white socks and stylish black shoes. A navy blue insignia of a tulip, which resembled the 10th Division symbol, was stitched on her left chest area, effectively over her heart. Urahara wolf-whistled at her choice of fashion. She looked like an elementary schoolgirl. With a vein clearly throbbing on her head, she gave the perverted salesman a kick on the chest without lifting her skirt accidentally. "Stop staring or else I'll never wear these clothes ever again," she warned.

"Ne, Kage-chan, you're so mean!" Urahara teased, his lips curling to a sick smile. His eyes travelled down, but before he could see anything that he wasn't supposed to see (A/N: Sorry, I'm not good with perverted stuff) Kage immediately lifted her foot off him and picked him up by the collar. She then tossed him high up into the air, making Renji sweat drop and edge away from her.

"I hope I wasn't called here just to be molested by you, Urahara…" Kage scowled, folding her arms. Urahara stood up, dusting himself. "What's the problem?"

"Oh, you see, these flowers as beautiful as you…"

**WHUMP**

"Sorry, sorry, my tongue slipped," apologized Urahara as he rubbed his bleeding nose. "Anyway, these white flowers appeared out of nowhere and when Abarai-kun and I touched them, they gave off reiatsu so familiar yet so unfamiliar. It is really puzzling, Kage-chan. Could you take a look?"

Kage blinked, then sighed, "Why me anyway, Urahara? You could just call Rukia or Hinamori."

"You're the new captain of the 5th Division, aren't you?" the salesman replied, putting on a serious look.

Kage was quite surprised. She didn't know how the ex-captain even managed to get the news. Not showing any shock on her face, Kage replied calmly, "Yeah. So?"

"You _**do **_know that the 5th Division is like the special ops, is it not?"

Urahara needed to speak no further. Kage knew where this was getting at. Renji, however curious he was, was too thickheaded to even ask where the conversation was getting to. Sighing, Kage gave in. "Fine. I'll help."

Urahara clapped his hands together and swayed his body. "Oooooh, that's Kage-chan, alright!"

Ignoring the salesman, Kage knelt down, careful not to lift her skirt in case of _**some **_perverted person around. She stretched out her hand and gave one of the white flowers a nudge. At once, ice blue sparkles appeared from the impact of the finger and the flower, and Kage felt a tingling sensation coming from where she touched. It was cold yet warm. It was familiar yet unfamiliar. It was soothing yet wild. On top of it all, it was weak yet powerful. So powerful that Kage could tell exactly how much reiatsu whoever planted the flowers had, but so weak that Kage couldn't pinpoint exactly who planted them. Normally, in situations like this, she'd be able to tell whose reiatsu belongs to whom even with the shinigami hiding their reiatsu that not even Yamamoto could track down, but this… this was definitely strange reiatsu she was sensing.

Standing up, Kage dusted her skirt. "True, it is strange, this reiatsu… I have but one clue as to whose it might belong to, but there is no reason for him to plant all these flowers…"

"Who is it, Kage?" Renji asked, finally gaining the voice to speak.

Kage didn't reply. Instead, she marched upstairs, mumbling a soft 'I need to change out of these clothes' before leaving the training grounds. Renji and Urahara looked at each other and shrugged. What was _**up **_with that weird girl?

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"What the (beep)?!" Renji shouted at the orange-haired vaizard, hitting his fists against the table impulsively, causing the cups of tea to spill over. "SCHOOL?!"

Rukia pulled Renji by the sleeve, and the redheaded pineapple was pulled with such force that he tripped over the leg of the chair and fell on his back. "Shut up, Renji!" Rukia scolded, getting seriously annoyed.

Apparently, she wasn't the only one who was annoyed by it. Of course, Renji and Rukia have gone to the school before, though Renji didn't like it so much, while Rukia found it to be pretty okay at times. But school? For who knows how long?! Hitsugaya's arms were folded and he scoffed in annoyance. Hinamori was actually pretty excited about meeting more humans in school and playing with her Shirou-chan. Merenaito went up to her room and returned downstairs with a book that read '101 Ways to Excel in Academics' and began flipping through the pages. Kage glared at the floor and the table immediately burst into flames that resembled the kidou spell Shakkohou. Then she doused it with a water-based kidou spell after calming down. Meian was thinking up ways to poke fun at her classmates.

Kurosaki Ichigo blinked at the sight.

Raising his arms to calm everyone down before they destroy the place, especially Hitsugaya and Kage, Ichigo explained, "Until Toushirou can learn how to use the powers properly, you'll have to make do with this arrangement."

Hitsugaya's eyebrow twitched and he gave a little scowl. "Ok, first of all," began Hitsugaya's debate. "I didn't agree that I would attend school with you, Kurosaki. Second, who the hell said that I don't know how to use the hollow powers properly?!"

"Calm down, Toushirou. It's only till Soul Society allows you to go back."

Folding his arms and pouting a little, Hitsugaya mumbled something incoherent under his breath. When Ichigo asked what the white-haired genius had said, Hitsugaya told him that it was nothing when in reality, Hitsugaya had called Ichigo a strawberry buffoon who had no idea that shinigami were not fit to go to school. Not that Ichigo cared, of course, seeing that Rukia handled it quite well there, even though she _**did **_score pretty badly for the exams.

"So, when does school start?" Renji asked, hoping that it wouldn't be anytime soon.

Ichigo gave a little grin. "Tomorrow."

At that time, Hitsugaya, Merenaito and Kage all said the same thing under their breaths.

"Damn you."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"OK, class!" the teacher began the lesson by clapping her hands to get the students' attention. "We have a couple of new students joining us today! Please welcome them with open arms and make them feel comfortable!"

'_Like hell I would_," thought Hitsugaya. He nearly sighed in annoyance since he hated school as much as he hated candy. People would mistake him for an elementary school student because of his appearance, so he pretty much hated school.

The teacher requested for the group to introduce themselves. Along the line, Hitsugaya was obliged to mumble out his name first, followed by a smiling Hinamori, then Merenaito who seemed very reluctant to be in school, then Kage who looked like as if she was going to kill Ichigo, followed by a sugar high Meian, then Rukia and finally Renji. The teacher then asked them to settle down quickly so that she could begin her lesson.

Hitsugaya finally sighed, seeing that he had to sit next to the one and only buffoon, Kurosaki Ichigo. It was more like all the seats had been taken by the others and there was only one left which was next to Ichigo so Hitsugaya _**had **_to take it even if he protested. He tried to ignore the cheery voice calling him 'Toushirou' throughout nearly the entire lesson and flicked a pencil off the desk, feeling rather pissed off.

In quite a distance away from the school, Ulquiorra Schiffer appeared.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Finally, after long boring hours of lessons, school was over. Packing their bags, the group decided to walk back to the warehouse while Ichigo said that he had to go home first. Rukia scoffed in his face that he was making an excuse not to come and help everyone else in Hitsugaya's secret training. Ichigo was about to insult her again when she merely gave him a tight slap on the face, leaving a red palm mark, and trudging off, dragging an innocent Renji and a pissed Ichigo with her. Meian and Hinamori quickly followed enthusiastically while Hitsugaya walked alone. Kage and Merenaito were walking together behind the white-haired prodigy, with Merenaito reading a book she borrowed from the library and Kage mentally cursing Ichigo. Honestly, what _**was **_it that Rukia saw in that clumsy idiot?

Kage stopped dead in her tracks. She felt something curling in her stomach, like as if there were live tentacles squirming around within her. Tilting back her head warily, her diamond eyes glanced around at her surroundings. The feeling then calmed down a bit, though she still felt unsure about her surroundings. Merenaito paused and looked up from her book when she heard Kage's shoes screech as she stopped. Turning to face her younger sister, Merenaito asked softly, "What is it, Kage?"

"Merenaito…" Kage faced her with serious sparkling diamond-like orbs. "I sense something."

At this, Merenaito closed her book with a bookmark. "Is it an Arrancar?"

Kage seemed a little skeptical. "I'm not so sure… If it is, the phone should've given off a signal, at least."

"True… Well, we'd better get out of here and check up on it later. You know Toushi's training is very important to everyone."

Sighing a little, Kage replied, "…Alright."

Hovering above the school, the 4th Espada narrowed his eyes.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The sound of the metal blades clashing echoed throughout the entire warehouse as Hitsugaya shunpo-ed away from Hiyori, Hyourinmaru unsheathed. He re-appeared behind her but was caught off-guard as Hiyori managed to turn around quickly and react by slashing her zanpakutou at him. Hitsugaya managed to escape the hit with a minor cut on his cheek. Wiping the blood off with the back of his hand, he hurled himself towards her and decided to call upon Hyourinmaru's shikai. "Souten ni zase, Hyourinmaru!" The familiar dragon of ice manifested from a concentrated reiatsu appeared from the blade and was dashing towards the female vaizard. Hiyori raised her reiatsu to match Hyourinmaru's and brought up her blade for a shield. The freezing cold rush of water soon overwhelmed her and the reiatsu level began fluctuating.

It was then Hinamori realized that Hitsugaya had really grown in terms of power.

The reiatsu coming from him was completely overwhelming; she could feel a strong sea breeze and a storm coming. She could feel the icy coldness surrounding her and choking her. It felt like as if she were in the North Pole. She touched her lips. Her fingers were stained with blood when she removed them. The reiatsu coming from Hitsugaya was so cold and numbing that Hinamori didn't even feel the pain of her lips cracking and bleeding. Did obtaining hollow powers make him _**that **_powerful?

When the quick battle ended, Hitsugaya sealed Hyourinmaru and sheathed it. He ran across the ice which had frozen the grounds and looked for Hiyori, hoping that he didn't freeze her solid by accident. When he found her frozen statue, he immediately got Shinji to carry it back to the warehouse.

"Hitsugaya-kun…" He heard Hinamori call him. He turned to face the peach girl. "You got a little scratch there."

Hitsugaya touched his injured cheek. "…So?" he replied, a little cold from the battle.

Hinamori didn't mind the cold reply. Her Shirou-chan had always been like that after a battle, after all. Still cold from the fight. Smiling sweetly, the bun girl asked, "Would you mind if I dress it?"

Flushing a little, Hitsugaya's iciness faded away. "Um, no, I don't mind…" Upon hearing his childhood friend giggle, his blush deepened to a shade of crimson red rather than deep pink. Just as Hinamori went up to get a bandage and Hitsugaya went to follow, a spike in reiatsu could be detected. A scream followed. Hitsugaya's eyes widened. "HINAMORI!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

When Hitsugaya reached the top of the stairs, what he saw shocked him. An Arrancar with hollow green eyes holding an unconscious Hinamori by the throat was standing right before him. He had a hole in his own throat, and wearing a white hakama with a white jacket over it. "Trash…" He heard the Arrancar mutter to himself as the Arrancar tossed Hinamori's limp body aside.

"Hinamori!" Before Hitsugaya could rush to her aid, he felt a cold hand grip his throat. Glaring at the strange Arrancar for doing that, Hitsugaya mentally cursed.

"Finally," the Arrancar muttered solemnly. "I have found you, Key of the Hougyoku." With that, he unzipped his white jacket and pulled down the left side of the jacket, revealing a black insignia of the number 4 nicely printed on his left chest. Hitsugaya's teal eyes widened.

"E-Espada?!"

"What's wrong, Toushirou?!" Ichigo shouted from upstairs, and Hitsugaya could hear the heavy footsteps rushing down the stairs. Ichigo and all of the others, excluding all the other vaizards, soon came downstairs. Apparently, Hitsugaya's exclaim must have had gotten their attention. "Y-you're… You're that Arrancar with Grimmjaw the last time we met!"

"Your memory seems to have not failed you as of yet, Kurosaki Ichigo," Ulquiorra stated monotonously. "However, I have no business with you right now." He quickly zipped his jacket and was about to get away with Hitsugaya when Ichigo got out of his body and unleashed Zangetsu, stopping Ulquiorra from getting to the door by blocking his way. Merenaito, Kage and Meian jumped out of their gigais, instructing Renji and Rukia to carry Hinamori upstairs and take care of her. They obeyed the new captains' orders and immediately carried the unconscious girl upstairs. It was then Hitsugaya and Ichigo finally noticed where their zanpakutous were placed.

Merenaito's zanpakutou was nicely strapped to the left side of her waist, a sash from the black-hilted zanpakutou going round her waist to support her zanpakutou which had a peculiar insignia at the bottom of the hilt in the shape of a flower, and a rectangular guard. Kage's zanpakutou was unique in a sense that she had hers strapped to her back at waist level, just like Soi Fong's zanpakutou, but there was a silver sword band attached to Kage's waist which had been dully decorated with a black clip at the front. Her zanpakutou with a guard in the shape of a tulip was supported by the sword band. Meian's zanpakutou was apparently nowhere to be seen, but Hitsugaya could see a faint black hilt from the left of the inside of Meian's haori.

The Kurayami sisters unsheathed their zanpakutous and blocked Ulquiorra's way using them. Ichigo was shocked to see that Kage had a weird zanpakutou whose blade was the exact same length as the hilt! That was even shorter than Shinsou! Ichigo nearly gaped when he saw that Meian's zanpakutou had a bendy blade. Merenaito's seemed perfectly normal other than the beautifully unique insignia at the bottom of the hilt. Who _**were **_these strange girls anyway? And how did Toushirou know them? These questions flashed in Ichigo's mind over and over again, thus he didn't realize that Ulquiorra was beginning to open up a garganta.

"Wait, you!" Ichigo exclaimed. "Where do you think you're taking Toushirou to?!"

Even though it seemed that the Kurayamis didn't care, they were in a ready stance and worry was written all over their faces. They seemed serious. _**Dead **_serious. It looked like as if they were going to call upon their zanpakutous shikai. Ulquiorra stopped opening the garganta half-way and turned to face Ichigo to reply, much to everyone's shock. "Aizen-sama wishes for Hitsugaya-sama's presence in Hueco Mondo."

"Hitsugaya-sama…?" Kage repeated, her voice getting softer. "Don't tell me that Aizen…has made Toushirou part of his army?!"

Hitsugaya's eyes widened at the logic behind her statement. Ichigo was prepared to go bankai. He was _**not **_going to let the white-haired vaizard get taken to Hueco Mondo to be Aizen's slave. He was _**not**_. Merenaito's eyes narrowed to slits. Her golden orbs began to glow with pure anger. Meian placed both hands on the hilt of her zanpakutou and gripped the hilt so tightly that she could feel the friction between her hands and the hilt. Kage's hand slowly moved to the blade of her zanpakutou. The action did not miss her sisters' eyes. They silently wished that Kage wouldn't overreact, but Kage was temperamental, and you would _**not **_want to see Kage in a terrible mood.

Ulquiorra finished opening up the garganta and was about to step into it when he felt an overpowering amount of reiatsu fill the entire warehouse. It belonged to someone near, so dangerously close. He looked at the white-haired boy in his grasp, his eyes widening just a little at the amount of reiatsu the boy was releasing. Ichigo became paralyzed when he felt the reiatsu. Merenaito's hair was flying around wildly and so was Kage's and Meian's, but they seemed indifferent other than the hair, even though the reiatsu was beginning to choke Ichigo. Hitsugaya's body glowed a translucent shade of pure white as his hands grabbed onto Ulquiorra's and managed to force himself out of Ulquiorra's grasp. His hand moved to the hilt of his zanpakutou. Ulquiorra tried to move out of the way, but couldn't. He looked down at his feet. They had already been frozen to the ground.

Hitsugaya unsheathed Hyourinmaru, deciding that it was time to try out his new zanpakutou's techniques. His hand moved to the blade and he gripped onto the ice cold metal. The temperature in the room decreased considerably as white mist exuded from the blade. "Fuyu ni sakimasu…" Hitsugaya muttered quietly, his hand trailing along the path of his zanpakutou's blade. Hyourinmaru completely transformed into a zanpakutou of pure white, much to the amazement of the occupants in the room. Heck, even Ulquiorra was amazed to know that the boy's zanpakutou could take on another form. After all, he had heard from Aizen all about Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru, but…nothing like this! Hitsugaya's hand left the blade and the entire zanpakutou reflected the light in the room, blinding only the target Ulquiorra. When the light died down, the zanpakutou was already to his neck. It felt cold.

_**Deathly cold**_.

"Fuyu no Hana!"

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A/N: I added a little HitsuHina, HitsuIchi, HitsuMerenaito, HitsuKage and HitsuMeian hints here. Wow, all pairings had something to do with Hitsugaya. XD So how was it this time? Good? Bad? Any comments?

I am going to post something dedicated to Fuyu no Hana. If you're interested, you can check it out when it's posted. It will be entitled Winter Flower.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_The boy is…interesting, Aizen-sama."_

"_Really? Please elaborate, my dear Ulquiorra. Tell me everything you experienced."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_What the hell, Koori?! Why are you… What happened to you?!"_

"_After you broke the seal to my original form, I tried to just take over you for a little while so that you would be able to awaken peacefully. I wanted to thank you, but I didn't think that the force was this strong to make me so ill…"_

"_Koori, you…you baka!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_So, the Key to Hougyoku's awakening…is me?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hitsugaya Toushirou, by order of Yamamoto-soutaichou, you are hereby allowed to return to Soul Society where you shall be protected from getting taken by former 5__th__ Division Captain Aizen Sousuke. You will, however, not return to your post as captain of the 10__th__ Division because Yamamoto-soutaichou has something planned for you when you return."_

"_Something planned for me?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hitsugaya Toushirou, I have heard that in this past month, you have managed to overcome your inner hollow and gained control__ of your newly acquired powers as a vaizard?"_

"_Hai, soutaichou."_

"_That is good to hear. However, I am not fully convinced that you have the capabilities to return as captain and claim your former place in the Gotei 13. Moreover, Aizen Sousuke has eyes on you, therefore I have to put your abilities to the test. To see if you have what it takes to truly be a captain and to see if you have what it takes to aid us in the upcoming winter war against Aizen. Therefore, I have decided. You shall fight a battle and if you are victorious, I will then allow you to return as captain. However, if you lose, you will be forever banished from Soul Society. Is that clear?"_

"…_Hai."_

"_And there is one condition, Toushirou-kun."_

"_And what would that be, soutaichou?"_

"_You are going to fight against a highly-ranked shinigami. To be more precise…a __**captain**__."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Ok, here's your chance to decide who Hitsugaya will fight with. No, the fight won't take place in the next chapter, because this poll will take place till chapter 15, so you have about 2-3 weeks to cast your votes. I will only reveal the results in chapter 15. Here are the candidates: Soi Fong, Meian, Kage, Byakuya, Merenaito, Zaraki and Mayuri. The reasons why certain captains – Yamamoto, Unohana, Komamura, Kyouraku, Ukitake – aren't part of the choices vary. Yamamoto is going to oversee the battle so he can't very well fight with Hitsugaya. I have only seen Unohana use her zanpakutou for healing people so I can't have her healing Hitsugaya's injuries throughout the entire battle and making her get owned so easily. I plainly do not like Komamura because he only makes a few appearances. Moreover, I am unclear about his abilities. Lastly, I have no idea what Kyouraku's and Ukitake's zanpakutous can do since their abilities go unseen in the anime now. The Kurayamis are included since they're officially captains in this fanfic.

A little tip if you're having troubles deciding: try voting for a captain you don't like, because in the end (SPOILER) Hitsugaya will win the battle. I don't want my inbox full of flames saying that I made his/her favourite captain lose to Hitsu. I don't want any of that to happen. Unless you don't mind your favourite captain losing – quite terribly, I might add – then you can cast your vote.

Until chapter 15, review and vote!


	13. 十三   じゅうさん

Author's Note: I forgot to mention in the previous chapter… The voting process is split up into three steps. First, it is the preliminary rounds. Then I check and pick the top three semifinalists for the semifinal round for another round of voting for one out of the three semifinalists. Finally, I pick the two finalists out of the three for one last round of voting. This is the ensure fairness and accuracy. Moreover, it also makes me understand what you readers want out from this story. (smiles)

The preliminary rounds took place in the previous chapter. The semifinal rounds are going to take place in this chapter. I will reveal the top three candidates at the end of this chapter so you can vote away!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 13 – Return to Soul Society

Utterly in awe of the sheer beauty of the pure white zanpakutou in Hitsugaya's hands, Ichigo couldn't help but gape at the sight. It reminded him of Sode no Shirayuki, which would make him remember Rukia. Hiding a blush, Ichigo was astounded to see that Hitsugaya's new zanpakutou looked so much like Sode no Shirayuki. It wasn't heard of; a zanpakutou having two different forms, two different names and two different release commands. That would lead in a difference in abilities as well. It would be the same as having split personalities. Now _**that **_was interesting. No zanpakutou has ever had split personalities before. Yet, right before him now was the white-haired boy wielding a zanpakutou with split personalities. It was ironic, really.

Hitsugaya pressed the blade harder against Ulquiorra's pale neck till Fuyu no Hana began to draw drops of crimson blood trailing down its blade. The blood trickled down to Hitsugaya's hands but he didn't seem to care about it. "I'll give you one last chance, Espada," Hitsugaya's voice warned. "You get out of here right now, or else I'll impale you on my zanpakutou." He pressed the blade even harder till Ulquiorra couldn't breathe. "And mind you, I can just freeze and shatter you if you don't leave."

"I take that…" Ulquiorra stopped to try and take in some air. "…as a threat, Hitsugaya-sama?"

"If you want to put it that way," Hitsugaya growled in a whisper.

"…Fine."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Aizen Sousuke sat on his proud throne in his 'palace' of Arrancar army. He leaned back to relax in his chair and was smiling quite sadistically. He heard the large doors creak open and close, and some footsteps getting closer and closer to him. His grin only widened as he looked down and saw his favourite Espada. "Ah, Ulquiorra, you have returned. So, how was the trip?"

Ulquiorra bowed and kept his head low. Knowing that his Aizen-sama was awaiting an answer, Ulquiorra answered, "The boy is…interesting, Aizen-sama."

Aizen's eyes glimmered. "Really?" He raised an eyebrow out of curiosity. He leaned forward even more to get some more juicy news. "Please elaborate, my dear Ulquiorra. Tell me everything you experienced."

"_Hai_." Ulquiorra looked up, his face still expressionless and melancholic. "Hitsugaya-sama has gained two different forms of his zanpakutou, contrary to what you have told me, Aizen-sama."

"Is that so?" Aizen's curiosity was nearing the peak, and that was dangerous. For someone who have peaked Aizen's interest must be a very _**interesting **_being indeed. Aizen then noticed something red on Ulquiorra's neck. It wasn't flowing or dripping anything, so it wasn't a liquid of any sort. As he squinted his dull hollow hazelnut eyes, he could see that it was a very dark red, maybe reddish brown. He recognized that sight anywhere. '_Blood… __**Dried**__ blood… Hmm…_' He leaned back in his chair once again and asked, "Tell me, my sweet Ulquiorra, or rather, _**show **_me what happened."

"_Hai_." With that, Ulquiorra removed his eye and squished it. He opened his hand and the eye, which had turned to dust, drifted to Aizen and floated around him. Aizen watched with a sadistic glint in his eyes.

Chuckling a little, Aizen whispered, "Indeed, Hitsugaya-kun…Indeed, you _**are **_the one I've been looking for."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Hitsugaya Toushirou ran across the eerily empty snowy lands of his dreamscape. The blizzard was blinding and very cold. The snow and hail kept batting against his slim and slender figure, but he didn't mind. After all, he had been used to this kind of weather. Trudging through the snow hurriedly, Hitsugaya began shouting Koori's name, as well as his two zanpakutous' names, but neither replied. He tried sensing for their reiatsu, but he couldn't find anything. Period. He felt like he was the only one in his own dream, yet he felt that someone else was there. Someone else watching his every move…_

_Spinning around, he saw what he didn't quite expect to see._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya was sleeping very soundly. There was not a noise in his room and he didn't feel anyone's reiatsu warning him to wake up at all. Nope, none at all. He turned to his side and grasped onto the blanket. His breathing was steady. No one was going to disturb his sleep tonight, so it seemed. Everything was perfectly normal.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Shifting uncomfortably in her sleep, she tossed and turned. Her forehead was full of sweat and her eyes were shut tight. She had kicked her blanket to the floor but she didn't feel cold. A rise in reiatsu could be detected very easily, but she had maintained it so well that no one except herself could sense her reiatsu. Even so, she was getting a headache out of it. She didn't seem to be asleep, yet she was having a nightmare. Panting heavily, she sat upright and struggled to keep her emotions under control lest they blow something up.

Kurayami Mezurashii Kage wiped the tears from her eyes.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hello, Toushirou, I see that you are sound asleep," the familiar feminine voice teased a little._

_Hitsugaya's eyes widened a little. He knew that voice. He knew it! He heard it before! "Fuyu no Hana?!"_

_The white-haired girl danced around on tip-toes and was giggling quite chirpily. "That's right! It's me!"_

_Hitsugaya began to panic a little, not because Fuyu no Hana was a girl, though it was pretty obvious she was, but it was the fact that Fuyu no Hana had two different spirit forms! And there was also another fact he was beginning to get plainly shocked about… "How…? You? Um…"_

_He felt a cold touch on his hands. He looked down and saw that Fuyu no Hana was grasping his hands. She was __**cold**__, that's for sure. "Don't ask questions, Toushirou. Come with me. Koori would like to see you."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_Before him laid a deathly pale boy with silvery white hair. His eyes were closed and his breathing was pretty much stable, save for some raspy breaths here and there. His facial features, his build, his height, everything that had to do with him seemed all so…familiar to Hitsugaya, but he just couldn't pinpoint exactly what. The awkward thing was that the boy looked exactly like him in his Rukongai days. Hitsugaya stepped closer to the sleeping child. Fuyu no Hana and Hyourinmaru, surprisingly, were there by his side, and Fuyu no Hana touched the child's forehead. Sighing in relief, she spoke, "Good…Finally, Koori-chan is recuperating…"_

"_What the hell, Koori?!" Hitsugaya's exclaim stirred Koori. Koori opened his dazzling sapphire eyes and looked up at Hitsugaya in surprise. "Why are you…?" Hitsugaya rushed over the Koori and bent down to reach the height of the bed which was surprisingly short compared to Hitsugaya himself. "What happened to you?!"_

_Smiling rather weakly and reassuringly, Koori explained, "After you broke the seal to my original form, I tried to just take over you for a little while so that you would be able to awaken peacefully. I wanted to thank you, but I didn't think that the force was this strong to make me so ill…"_

_Hitsugaya sighed in frustration, even though he was sort of relieved to see Koori again. Nevertheless, he still scolded, "Koori, you…you baka!"_

_Giggling just a little, Koori continued, "But don't worry, Toushirou, I'll be ok in a few days' time. It's just a little fever and a little migraine. I'll live."_

"…_That wasn't very reassuring, Koori."_

_Ignoring Hitsugaya's comment, Koori rubbed his temples and asked, "Oh yes, what happened while I was out?"_

"_Well, nothing much, really, but an Espada from Aizen the bastard's army came to get me…" Hitsugaya trailed off a little, trying to recollect the day's events. "He called me the Key to the Hougyoku or something…"_

_Koori arched his silvery white eyebrows in curiosity and confusion while Hyourinmaru and Fuyu no Hana looked at each other with worry clearly plastered and splattered all over their faces. The child was too young to even learn of this. __**Both **__of the white-haired children were too young, but the zanpakutous were wise enough to learn about the Key. Wishing that Hitsugaya would just stop there, Fuyu no Hana and Hyourinmaru tried to force the reincarnation to wake up anytime. Just as they had wished, Hitsugaya began to wake up._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Why did you do that?" Koori's icy voice penetrated the awkward silence between the ice dragon, himself and his zanpakutou's spirit._

"_Because he's not yet ready to be told about the Hougyoku!" Fuyu no Hana retorted angrily, then muttered, "And neither are you, Koori."_

"_What the hell's going on?! Would you mind telling me?"Fuyu no Hana looked at Hyourinmaru uneasily but Hyourinmaru just gave a nod as consent. Fuyu no Hana forced a small smile and whispered in Koori's ear. Koori's sapphire eyes widened and he struggled back thousands of gasps. Though he was powerful, since he was a heavenly guardian, one could see the glistening tears in his eyes once he discovered the truth. "So, the Key to Hougyoku's awakening…is __**me**__?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Curious teal eyes open to a brightly-lit surrounding. Hitsugaya sat up, not really knowing what had caused him to wake up so soon, but later didn't really care about it anymore. He rubbed his head as he felt a small migraine acting up, and as it died down, he shifted over to face the wall and tried to get some more sleep. It was going to be a big day that morning. He could just taste it. Literally. The bright morning sun's rays penetrated his room, the wonderful birds chirping early in the morning, and the vaizards enthusaistically fighting over breakfast. What could get better than this? Aizen appearing out of nowhere and catching him? Now, that would be just plain wonderful!

As you can see, Hitsugaya Toushirou was definitely **_not _**a morning person.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Oi, Shinji! Pass me da' butter, would ya?" Hiyori ordered, stretching out her hand. Shinji mumbled a complaint under his breath and handed the short vaizard her butter. Hiyori buttered her bread and stuffed it in her mouth, licking butter off her fingers. Ichigo edged away in disgust, mentally making a note to himself not to take any more butter from where Hiyori did.

"Ah ya, Ichigo," Shinji began speaking, getting the orange-haired vaizard's attention. "Dat little white-haired friend of yers...Is he still sleepin' up there?" Shinji asked, pointing his butter knife up the staircase leading to the warehouse.

Ichigo shrugged and took another bite from his peanut butter sandwich, not willing to take butter, and replied with a muffled, "I suppose so..."

Then there was total silence other than the munching and chewing of the wide spread for breakfast. Ichigo was eating his peanut butter sandwich while all the other vaizards were snacking on buttered bread. Rukia wasn't quite the bready type so she was fine with rabbit-shaped cornflakes with milk. Renji, on the other hand, had two ham sandwiches already and was in the process of making another one. Hinamori didn't have the best of appetite so she just settled down with a nice cup of tea in the morning, waiting for Hitsugaya to join them for breakfast. Merenaito didn't want to eat and no one forced her to, thankfully, otherwise they'd have to suffer for ten days due to the power of her zanpakutou. Or make it 14 days. Kage seemed pretty out of sorts that morning so she didn't have anything to eat except for maybe a sunny-side up or two. Meian was getting a little sick due to the ailment she and her sisters shared in the day so she had a hot cup of milo to make her blood sugar higher.

As everyone ate their respective breakfast, there was a sudden spike in reiatsu. And it came from upstairs.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya rushed downstairs as he felt a sudden spike in reiatsu. As much as he hated getting up so early in the morning, it was necessary to do so while he was still in Seireitei since captains normally had early morning meetings which he obviously dreaded. Now he couldn't let his emotions get in the way. Not when there was a high reiatsu in the warehouse other than the reiatsus belonging to the various spiritual beings there. As soon as he reached downstairs, he saw a familiar blinding white light towards his way. The senkaimon began to open. At the same time, everyone had reached upstairs.

To their surprise, it was Byakuya who stepped out of the senkaimon. (A/N: Um...I'm not suggesting anything, if that's what you're thinking...)

"_Nii-sama_...?" Rukia muttered, not knowing why her brother, or brother-in-law, was doing here in the material world.

The stoic captain of the 6th Division was looking directly at the stony ex-captain of the 10th Division. Byakuya began, "Hitsugaya Toushirou, by order of Yamamoto-soutaichou, you are hereby allowed to return to Soul Society where you shall be protected from getting taken by former 5th Division Captain Aizen Sousuke. You will, however, not return to your post as captain of the 10th Division because Yamamoto-soutaichou has something planned for you when you return."

Hitsugaya blinked. "Something planned for me?" What could it be, he wondered.

"Yes. Now, Yamamoto-soutaichou is asking for your presence in the 1st Division." Byakuya stepped aside from the senkaimon passageway. "All of you have to return to Soul Society, except for the banished ones," Byakuya added hastily, eyeing the vaizards and Ichigo warily. "That's an order."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Taking in the familiar scent of reiatsus in the grand lands of the spirits, Hitsugaya sure loved to be home. Or rather, his division. And the paperwork. He hadn't felt so refreshed since who-knows-when and he sure felt great to be back in Soul Society. The spirit particles all over the place was utterly rejuvenating. Hitsugaya relaxed, even though he knew something bad was going to happen when he would go see Yamamoto at the 1st Division. Ichigo and Rukia had gone sightseeing in Soul Society, much to Byakuya's disapprovement, while Renji returned with his captain to the 6th Division. Hinamori offered to accompany her childhood friend to see Yamamoto, but he kindly rejected the offer as he wanted to go alone, so Hinamori reluctantly returned to the 5th Division with her captain, Kage. Merenaito walked back to the 9th Division as she read her book and Meian was greeted by her new fukutaichou and brought to the 3rd Division.

Now Hitsugaya was alone.

He shunpo-ed off to the 1st Division and knocked on the door gently, feeling rather nervous on the inside. He had a really really bad feeling about this...

"Come on in, Toushirou-kun," came the old fart's familiar voice.

"_Hai_." Hitsugaya opened the door and closed it, bowing with respect. Yamamoto pointed to the cushion on the floor right in front of his desk, as if beckoning for the white-haired prodigy to sit down. Hitsugaya got the message and sat down. "You, uh...called for me, soutaichou?"

Yamamoto nodded his head, putting the reports from the various members of the group that went along with Hitsugaya away."Hitsugaya Toushirou, I have heard that in this past month, you have managed to overcome your inner hollow and gained control of your newly acquired powers as a vaizard?"

"Hai, soutaichou," Hitsugaya replied rather hesitantly.

"That is good to hear. However," Yamamoto's voice took on a lower tone than usual. Oh no, thought Hitsugaya. "I am not fully convinced that you have the capabilities to return as captain and claim your former place in the Gotei 13. Moreover, Aizen Sousuke has eyes on you, therefore I have to put your abilities to the test." Although Yamamoto sounded quite pleased with that decision, Hitsugaya could feel that Yamamoto was beginning to...suspect his loyalty to Soul Society. "To see if you have what it takes to truly be a captain and to see if you have what it takes to aid us in the upcoming winter war against Aizen. Therefore, I have decided. You shall fight a battle and if you are victorious, I will then allow you to return as captain. However, if you lose, you will be forever banished from Soul Society. Is that clear?"

"…" Hitsugaya looked down at the ground and muttered out, "Hai."

"And there is one condition, Toushirou-kun," Yamamoto added.

"And what would that be, soutaichou?" Hitsugaya gulped, his nervousness getting a little out of whack.

"You are going to fight against a highly-ranked shinigami. To be more precise…"

Hitsugaya's heart nearly skipped a beat.

He knew where this was getting to.

_Oh damn, oh shit, oh damn, oh shit, oh damn shit, oh shit damn, oh bloody hell...OH. NO._

"A **_captain_**."

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A/N: Oh my gawd, I am so sorry that this chapter was short compared to the rest...

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_"Yes, a captain. Surely you won't oppose to that?"_

_"O-oh no...N-not at all, s-soutaichou..."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_"I have already decided on the captain who shall be dueling with you tomorrow. Have a good night's rest."_

_"Um, Yamamoto-soutaichou...Would you mind if I visit the other divisions?"_

_"Certainly not, Toushirou-kun."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

...Ok, now I apologise for a damn freakin' short preview...What is wrong with me?!

The top three semi-finalists, by the way, are...(drumroll) Zaraki Kenpachi...

Zaraki: Whooooo yeah! I'm gonna have a lot of fun!

...Kurotsuchi Mayuri...

Mayuri: Hmmmmmnnn...Lemme get my disecting tools ready.

...and finally, Kuchiki Byakuya!!!

Byakuya: ...Hn.

Now, you can vote once more, but only for the above three named captains. Again, this is to ensure fairness and accuracy. Plus, I like taking down the number of votes people make. Ha. Just simply add your vote in your review and what you want to see in that fighting chapter, like some people wanted Zaraki to know his zanpakutou's name in the fight, or something like that, like my personal favourite, the captain who is chosen in the end goes bankai and gains a whole new form in bankai. I'd like to do that to Byakuya, though.

Anyway, a personal question...Do you think voting is annoying to you? If it is, you can just tell me and I can just draw lots for which captain to do the fighting. Really, I can do that, but only if you think the voting thing is annoying. I've started too many votings in this story...and I apologise...


	14. 十四　じゅうよん

Author's Note: Some shocking news, people. I'll keep it short. I went to the hospital and doctor asked me to stay at home till Wednesday. That means I have ample time to update! Yay!!!

Anyway, the voting process is getting along wonderfully! I'll announce the two finalists at the end of this chapter then you can vote for one last time which will decide on Hitsugaya's battle. Hope you make a wise decision!

...Gosh. This chapter was actually funny. XD I'm not going to change it to Humor, anyway. I think Drama suits this better because of the ending. Ah ah ah. You're not gonna squeeze the ending outta me. Nope. No way. Not even if you give me Hitsugaya-shaped cookies. XD

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 14 – Investigation on the 13 Divisions!

Hitsugaya stared at the old captain in front of him. Although he seemed to be indifferent on the outside, his once calm teal eyes were obviously showing fear and shock. Perhaps it had been from the terrifying news from the old geezer? After all, no one dared to go against the powerful commander-general; his reiatsu was enough to send Hitsugaya down on his knees. He knew, of course, he had experienced it before. Not even Zaraki was insane enough to even talk back at Yamamoto. He _**had **_heard, though, when Kuchiki Rukia was being rescued by the ryoka, Ukitake and Kyouraku had gone against Yamamoto. Too bad Hitsugaya was too busy investigating about the Central 42 members' gruesome deaths, otherwise he would've been able to witness the battle between the three captains.

After that process of shock, Hitsugaya found his voice to reply, "A captain?" It was then he realized that he must have been very shaken by the news, as his voice was soft and shaky.

"Yes, a captain," the old captain replied as-a-matter-of-factly. He arched a grayish white eyebrow. "Surely you won't oppose to that?"

Hitsugaya sucked in a deep intake of oxygen. "O-oh no...N-not at all, s-soutaichou..." he stammered, worried eyes darting across the room as a form of distraction away from looking directly at Yamamoto.

Yamamoto nodded his head repeatedly with a smile on his face. "Good, good." He sorted out some more documents and placed them away. "I have already decided on the captain who shall be duelling with you tomorrow." At this, Hitsugaya perked his ears and looked straight up at Yamamoto. "Have a good night's rest."

"Um, Yamamoto-soutaichou..." Hitsugaya began his request, "Would you mind if I visit the other divisions?"

"Certainly not, Toushirou-kun," came the old geezer's satisfied reply. Somehow, Hitsugaya couldn't shake off the feeling that Yamamoto actually had everything planned for him beforehand. It was like as if Yamamoto was pulling the strings and was already expecting him to request something like that. "You have the entire day today and the entire morning tomorrow to visit the other divisions."

"_A-arigatou gozaimasu, _soutaichou," Hitsugaya thanked before bowing.

He was about to stand up and leave when Yamamoto's voice stopped him, "Toushirou-kun, are you trying to figure out on your own about exactly _**who **_I have chosen to duel you?" Hitsugaya turned to face him in surprise. Yamamoto only smiled. Rather creepily, I might add. "It's good that you're already thinking about my chosen candidate. You _**have **_always been the captain who likes thinking ahead." Yamamoto continued, "However, all of the captains have already prepared themselves for your visit, so if you were to figure it out on your own, I'd say I'll be impressed."

"I don't deserve your praise, Yamamoto-soutaichou," Hitsugaya spoke hastily, bowing quickly. He wanted to get out of the 1st Division as soon as possible. He didn't feel right about staying there for so long; it was weird. He didn't know why, but he felt that he should just get out.

"Ah, you are too humble, Toushirou-kun." Yamamoto looked away and spoke in a whisper under his breath, "One of the main reasons why I chose you as a captain…" Hitsugaya blinked when he heard the whisper about him being chosen as captain, though he didn't manage to catch the meaning behind the sentence as it didn't sound clear enough. (A/N: Seriously, I made that up. XD) Yamamoto continued, "Anyway, I shouldn't keep you here any longer. Return to your division and rest up, or as you have requested, you may go and visit the other divisions. Just don't disturb their training sessions, Toushirou-kun."

Hitsugaya bowed. "_Hai_."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

When Hitsugaya stepped out of the office of the 1st Division, he loitered around the area near the 2nd Division. He wasn't about to visit Soi Fong just yet. Taking out a random piece of paper and a brush which came out from nowhere, apparently, Hitsugaya began writing down the names of all the captains of the Gotei 13 in Kanji and marked a cross next to Yamamoto's name. Mumbling to himself, Hitsugaya placed the brush and paper away, "Yamamoto-soutaichou can't be the one since he's in charge of this entire battle. I'll just have to go all over Seireitei to figure it out." With that, Hitsugaya shunpo-ed off to the 2nd Division office. He knocked on the door. "Soi Fong-taichou?"

When he didn't hear anyone replying, Hitsugaya assumed that she had gone off training with her Secret Ops. He shunpo-ed off to the Secret Ops training grounds to look for Soi Fong. Hearing a few commands and shouts, he quickly masked his reiatsu and hid behind a pole holding up the roof of the building. He wasn't able to see, but he was definitely able to hear everything. Soi Fong began, "Is that all you've got?! You have to learn how to buck up! When Yoruichi-sama comes to visit us again, I want you to impress her with everything you've got! Is that clear?!"

"…"

"I said, is that clear?!" Soi Fong threatened, unsheathing her zanpakutou.

Some of the members of the 2nd Division began to tremble. "_Hai! Taichou!_"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya was glad he got away from the 2nd Division, because if he had stayed on any longer, he might've been accidentally struck by one of the poison darts tossed by one of the 2nd Division members' poor aim. "Can't be Soi Fong-taichou…She's more concerned about Shihouin Yoruichi's views…" Hitsugaya began to grumble, "I _**hate **_cats…" Stuffing the paper away, he shunpo-ed off to the 3rd Division where the new captain Meian was. Smirking at the many possible mess-ups Meian must've caused, Hitsugaya was actually excited about seeing Meian mess up in front of him.

That'd give him an edge when those two midgets were arguing.

"Izuru-kun!" Hitsugaya heard Meian moan. "Why don't you put that thing down and help me with the paperwork?!" Hitsugaya blinked. That sounded awfully familiar…

"_D-demo _taichou, I've made an appointment with Rangiku-san at the bar…"

Ah. That must've been it, Hitsugaya thought. No wonder Kira was so unwilling to help out. He loved drinking sake with Matsumoto.

"Eh? A bar?" Meian began to squeal, much to Hitsugaya's and Kira's horror. "Wheeeeee!!!! Take me! Take me! Take me! I wanna go see! I've always wanted to see a bar and drink sake! Please!"

With that kind of attitude, how _**did **_Meian become a captain?

"But…taichou, aren't you…a little young for sake?"

**WHUMP WHUMP SMACK SMACK WHUMP WHUMP**

"Let's go straight away, taichou!"

…That explained _**a lot**_.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya marked a cross next to Meian's name, not really wanting to state his reason for crossing her out as a suspect. He just felt that Meian wasn't the candidate chosen, since Meian was a newly-appointed captain and might not be able to fight against him as her first battle as a captain, excluding the fight against the 4th Espada, seeing that Hitsugaya did most of the fighting. Crumpling the paper and stuffing it away, Hitsugaya shunpo-ed off to the 4th Division, even though he didn't see it as a necessary measure, seeing that all the 4th Division members did was heal, heal and heal.

"What is it now, Isane?" Hitsugaya heard the gentle and calm voice of Unohana Retsu speak to her fuming fukutaichou. "Did the 11th Division members do anything?"

"No no, it's not that, taichou...!" Isane was getting very angry. "It's…it's those 12th Division members! They're…they're claiming that their medical research is better than ours, taichou!"

Hitsugaya heard Unohana take a sip from her tea and heard Unohana placing the tea cup down on the table rather gently. "I see. Very well, I shall handle this myself, Isane."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya sighed in frustration as he marked another cross. It _**was **_unnecessary after all. Scanning through the remaining list of names on the piece of paper, Hitsugaya realized that it was the 5th Division up next. His eyes shone with anticipation. "Ah…Kage…" Hitsugaya muttered as he placed the paper away. Shunpo-ing off to the 5th Division, Hitsugaya found himself hidden behind a soft cushioned dummy. If he was lucky enough not to land himself in the middle of 5th Division's training, then perhaps he might not be the accidental target in the end.

"_Hadou no sanjyuusan: Shoukatsui!_"

Oh crap.

Hinamori.

**BOOM!**

**Sizzle…**

Hitsugaya winced as he saw one of the straw dummies burst into flames caused by the powerful kidou spell by a kidou master. Glancing over at Hinamori warily, he was hoping he wasn't next. That was when he realized that there were only two shinigami there, both wearing strange hoods of some sort. Hitsugaya, being a captain for who knows how long, recognized it as the Kidou Corps uniform. His eyes widened a little. He had no idea Kage was good at kidou. Scratch that. He had no idea Kage's kidou was at such a high level that she could become the captain of the Kidou Corps herself.

He saw one of the hooded shinigami walk up and quickly hid behind the dummy again, taking out the piece of paper to mark a tick next to Kage's name when he suddenly got blasted off his feet. Opening his eyes, he saw Kage's glistening diamond eyes staring at him. Or more like glaring. "What the hell _**are**_ you doing here, Tou-chan?"

Blinking in confusion, Hitsugaya asked daringly, "Kage?"

Removing the cloth covering half of her face, she immediately gave Hitsugaya a tight slap on the face. "Yes it's me, you idiot. I ask you once again, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Just…" Hitsugaya glanced at Hinamori who removed her cloth as well, giving him a light-hearted smile which melted his heart. "…visiting."

"Ah. I see. And for that, you disrupted my training with my vice-captain. How should I make you pay, hmmm?" Kage folded her arms. "I don't reckon you've been snooping around like this in the previous divisions, have you?"

"Uhh, yes?"

Kage sighed. "Strange, Meian should've notified me by now if you were snooping around…unless she purposely wanted to give me a surprise." Looking at the gaping Hitsugaya, Kage explained, "Even if you were to hide your reiatsu, you should know by now that Meian, Merenaito and I can sense it. Especially me," Kage added with a glare that gave Hitsugaya a slight shiver up the spine. "You're worried about tomorrow's battle, aren't you?" Kage tied the cloth back. "If you're suspecting me, I suggest you don't, because if I were really the one chosen to fight with you, I'd fry you right here, right now."

…That made perfect sense.

"Now get out before I really fry you."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Chire, Senbonzakura," Byakuya austerely released his zanpakutou's shikai, allowing the petal-like blades formed from Senbonzakura's full blade form drift along freely, not giving Senbonzakura any particular commands just yet.

"Hoeru! Zabimaru!" Renji shouted out his zanpakutou's name, extending his zanpakutou further. He was about to hit his captain right on the shoulder when Byakuya shielded himself from the impact by first sending the petals of Senbonzakura towards Renji, cutting the red pineapple severely. Renji fell with a sickening thud, spitting out blood. Zabimaru sealed itself.

"Hmph." Byakuya sealed back Senbonzakura and sheathed it. "You still haven't changed at all, Renji."

"I…" Renji went on his knees despite his injuries. "I'm sorry, taichou! I promise, I'll do better next time!"

"You'd better give me a good fight next time, Renji," Byakuya ordered, walking towards his division office. "Go to the 4th Division to have those wounds treated. I don't want a tattered and beaten up red pineapple as a fukutaichou."

"_H…hai!_"

Hitsugaya watched with wide eyes and marked a tick against Byakuya's name. If there was a reason why Byakuya was being so harsh even on his own fukutaichou in a friendly training match, it would be because Byakuya had to be serious for something even bigger, most probably the upcoming fight Hitsugaya would have against another captain…

Hitsugaya Toushirou didn't want to think about fighting the stoic Kuchiki Byakuya.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya felt really tempted to skip the 7th Division. He wasn't close to Komamura at all; in fact, they barely interacted with each other, even during captain meetings! However, if he wanted answers, he would have to visit every single division he came across. Knocking on the door, Hitsugaya asked, "Komamura-taichou, are you there?"

The door slid open but it wasn't Komamura who answered. It was an eerily familiar jet black-haired girl with sparkling eyes who answered it. Her zanpakutou had a glowing green hilt, which was creepy, that's for sure, and it was extraordinarily small. She had her zanpakutou, not more than 5cm long, stabbed right in the soil of a pot. She had that pot tied to her waist and it was being supported by two obi sashes, which was pretty unique to Hitsugaya. He had never seen a zanpakutou so small, so delicate, so unique. If there were an award for Most Unique Zanpakutou, this girl's zanpakutou might just be a winner. "Yes? Is there anything I can do for you?" the girl asked politely.

"Ah…Is Komamura-taichou in?"

The girl shook her head. "No. Komamura-taichou and Iba-fukutaichou have been dispatched to the material world to take care of some Menos. I'm the seventh seat, Kurayami Yuurei. It's nice to meet you…uh…"

"Hitsugaya. Hitsugaya Toushirou," Hitsugaya replied, smiling a little. It was no wonder he found the girl familiar. She was a Kurayami, just like Merenaito, Kage and Meian.

"Toushirou? Ohh, so _**you're **_Gagaya-chan!" Hitsugaya twitched. Yuurei giggled. "If you're looking for Komamura-taichou, you must be trying to figure out who you're going to fight tomorrow, right?"

"Wow, news sure travels fast…" Hitsugaya spoke without thinking, stealing a glance at the 5th Division training grounds.

"Not very surprising for cousins to inherit the family clairvoyance, is it? Anyway, you must've gone to the 6th Division as well, haven't you?"

"Well…yeah."

"How is Kuchiki-taichou? Is he well? Is he still wielding Senbonzakura properly? Is he still as stoic as ever? Is he-?" As soon as she realized that she was flooding Hitsugaya with concerned questions about Byakuya, Yuurei shook her head to get the blush away. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

Hitsugaya scoffed a little. If it was one thing the Kurayamis were similar in, it would be the mysterious aura surrounding them twenty-four seven.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya didn't need to visit the 8th Division, but he did anyway, even though he already knew what was going to happen right in front of him: Nanao kicking Kyouraku in a place she wasn't supposed to kick and the 8th Division captain groaning and moaning in pain while still admiring his fukutaichou's beauty and gracefulness. "Oh my dear Nanao-chan…" he heard Kyouraku groan in pain. "Why are you being so cold and mean?"

Sighing a little, Hitsugaya marked a cross next to Kyouraku's name. That drunkard would only be serious every once in a while and Yamamoto, even though Kyouraku was his own student, wouldn't be _**that **_daft to get a drunkard to take part in the battle. Even so, Hitsugaya still admitted that it would be light years away before his powers could match that of Kyouraku's and Ukitake's. Hitsugaya decided to stop by and visit Merenaito instead. After all, she _**was **_the newly-appointed captain of the 9th Division. It wouldn't hurt to visit her…would it?

"Um…Taichou?" Hisagi spoke up uneasily. He wasn't used to having a new taichou around the division.

"Yes?" Merenaito asked, not taking her eyes off her book of spells.

"I…don't mean to sound rude, but…" Hisagi's eyes darted to the stack of paperwork. "Shouldn't you be starting on the paperwork?"

"I've already finished the paperwork, Hisagi," Merenaito replied simply, flipping another page of her book. Hisagi blinked before he went over to check on the paperwork. Sure enough. Every single piece of paperwork that used to be signature-less was now beautifully signed by Merenaito herself. Hisagi was baffled. He didn't even see Merenaito lift a finger! "Anyway, Hisagi, you should go open the door." Hitsugaya felt his heart beating in his throat. Was Merenaito really _**that **_attentive?

"Eh?"

"I believe someone we know is waiting outside our door."

"_Hai…_" Hisagi then went over to open the door. He was quite surprised to see the white-haired prodigy standing outside like some kind of spy. Allowing Hitsugaya to enter the division office, Hisagi bowed and stepped aside. Hitsugaya entered quite uneasily.

"You are here to see if I am the one chosen to fight you, yes?" Merenaito asked softly, flipping yet another page of her intriguing spell book. "I don't think you need to answer. I already know what it is. Well, a word of advice, Toushi," Merenaito continued, closing her book and placing it down gently and carefully, not wanting to even scratch it. "You should be training up instead of sneaking around like this. I can assure you, the captain chosen to fight you is much less powerful than my sisters and I. But even so, with your current level, you should be training up to get ready. Of course neither my sisters nor I have been chosen as Yamamoto's candidate, so you can rest easy and not worry about fighting either of us."

Hitsugaya blinked. Merenaito, _**the **_usually aloofKurayami Merenaito Kanashii, was actually expressing concern for him, not to mention insulting his capabilities as well. Thanking Merenaito, he left the 9th Division, leaving Merenaito to read her book with a warm smile on her face…and a little beautiful blush.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Upon returning to his own division, Hitsugaya didn't really know what to do. It was already approaching night by the time he was done with the 1st to the 9th Divisions. It was time for him to rest up and get ready for the upcoming battle the next morning. He didn't know if he should rest up in his own division and face Matsumoto or try and beg for a bed from either one of his childhood friends and get completely embarrassed. Either way, his dignity and pride would drop just a little. Sighing in frustration, Hitsugaya decided to return to his division for a good night's rest. After all, Matsumoto reserved the right to see him again. He knocked on the door since he was no longer captain of his own division, awaiting an answer from Matsumoto. The door slid open, revealing the familiar buxom strawberry blonde with awfully messy hair. Matsumoto's eyes glistened with tears upon seeing Hitsugaya again.

"TAICHOU!" Matsumoto cried as she hugged the white-haired boy with a death hug. Hitsugaya's oxygen supply was pretty much cut off by her big 'heavenly eyes'. "Oh, taichou, I missed you so much!!!"

"That's…hack…great, Matsumoto…Hack," Hitsugaya gasped for air. "Now could you…hack…just let me go?"

"Oh! Sorry, taichou!" Matsumoto apologized, letting Hitsugaya go immediately before allowing him to enter the office. "See, taichou? I finished all the paperwork, just like you asked me to on the day you…left," Matsumoto added quietly. Hitsugaya caught it anyway. "So, taichou, you want to rest up here before your fight tomorrow?"

"Yes, that would be great, Matsumoto," Hitsugaya replied with an assuring smile. Matsumoto smiled back. She hadn't smiled since Hitsugaya left, and she sure was glad to have him back again.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_So," Koori began after taking a sip from ice cold milo. "Tomorrow's the big day, huh?"_

_Hitsugaya was sitting on the floor Indian-style next to Koori's bed. He was a little bit surprised to see Koori still bedridden, but decided to keep it quiet so as to not make Koori seem like a child. "Yeah, I guess," Hitsugaya replied, shrugging a little._

"_Don't be so worried!" Koori reassured, smiling widely. "You're not the type who gets so worried that easily."_

"_But…if I fail to win, I'll be exiled!"_

"_I said not to worry," Koori reassured once more, taking another sip. "I'll be with you throughout the entire battle, and so will Fuyu no Hana and Hyourinmaru. Speaking of which, where are those two?"_

"_I saw them playing outside…" Hitsugaya trailed off, still unable to take the image of a playful and childish Hyourinmaru off his mind._

"_Hn. Typical of Fuyu no Hana to drag Hyourinmaru into her world of childishness," Koori scoffed. "Anyway, you're able to use my powers now. So with my powers, Fuyu no Hana's powers, Hyourinmaru's powers and your powers combined, you'll be able to win that battle hands-down!" Koori encouraged with a confident grin plastered on his young facial features._

_Hitsugaya, on the other hand, sighed worriedly, "I hope so…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

When Hitsugaya awoke from his deep slumber of eleven hours, he checked the clock. It read 8 am in the morning. He still had two hours left to check on the remaining three divisions before heading off to the fighting grounds. Rushing to the bathroom, Hitsugaya proceeded to gel up his snow white hair and washed his face before leaving the division office where Matsumoto slept soundly on the sofa. He then shunpo-ed off to the deadly 11th Division of the ever-so famous and violent Zaraki Kenpachi. This was one division he did _**not **_like to visit, but it was necessary.

"Ken-chan!" the naïve voice of Yachiru called out. The pink-haired fukutaichou hopped onto Zaraki's shoulder where she usually was. "Ne, ne, Ken-chan, are you excited about the fight later on with Midget-chan?"

Hitsugaya twitched at the nickname. Zaraki, he heard, replied with a deep chuckle. "Betcha I am! I can't wait to see that little brat get his ass kicked real bad!"

Yachiru giggled. "I wanna see him lose too, Ken-chan!"

As Hitsugaya marked a tick against Zaraki's name, he couldn't help but get worried once more.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Another division he dreaded to visit was the 12th Division with all of its weird and freaky technology and scientific research and experiments and the what not. It crept even the old man Yamamoto himself out sometimes too, especially when Mayuri started ranting on and on about his technological and scientific discoveries about his experiments. Yamamoto would sometimes express his disgust by asking someone to give him a bucket or even ask the guards to throw Mayuri out. Either those or Yamamoto simply ended the meeting. Period. Hitsugaya, being the youngest captain – or ex-captain temporarily – definitely did _**not **_like creepy crawlies. Most of all, he hated being the guinea pig himself. If he were to fight Mayuri and lose, that masked zombie might just cut him up and research on his insides.

Hitsugaya Toushirou felt a tingle up his throat, and decided not to think about that just yet…

"Nemu, you blockhead of a daughter! Why can't you do anything right?!" Mayuri scolded his 'daughter' after a series of explosions coming from the lab. Hitsugaya hid behind a wall.

"I'm sorry, Mayuri-sama."

"Just clean up the mess before I come back! Geez…"

Hitsugaya marked a tick next to Mayuri's name before even thinking twice.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Sighing contentedly, Hitsugaya was glad to have reached his final destination: the 13th Division. Sure, Ukitake could get on his nerves sometimes with all the delicious and tempting but childish sweet temptations, but he was a great companion to Hitsugaya. Both of them were Shirou-chans, that's for sure, but Hitsugaya could only imagine what would've happened if Hinamori were to find out that Ukitake had 'borrowed' her nickname for him specially. Nevertheless, Hitsugaya sometimes loved the accompaniment of the sickly tuberculosis patient.

"Taichou! My beloved taichou!" Kiyone exclaimed. "You are leaving so early? Let me accompany you while that clown is off somewhere else instead of loyally attending to you!"

"…Kiyone, I'm fine, I can go on my own…" Ukitake trailed off. "…Anyway, I've already made an appointment with Shunsui. We'll be going there together. There is no need for you to accompany me," Ukitake continued with a weak smile.

Hitsugaya made a mental note to mark a cross next to Ukitake's name. After all, if Ukitake were the one chosen, Ukitake'd probably decline that 'offer' straight away. Besides…how could the old geezer be so heartless to send out his ill student in battle?

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Ah, Toushirou-kun," Yamamoto began the meeting by saying. "You have come. This is perfect timing. All of the captains of the other divisions have also gathered here today to witness your duel with the candidate I have personally picked."

Hitsugaya gulped quite audibly, causing Zaraki to laugh. Ukitake told him to keep quiet lest he scared the boy and Zaraki shut up with a hmph. '_So…after moving around Seireitei, I have finally found out who I'm going to fight with…Although all I've found are possible candidates. It's either Kuchiki-taichou, Zaraki-taichou and Kurotsuchi-taichou. I'll just have to wait for Yamamoto-soutaichou's order…_'

"Hitsugaya Toushirou…" Yamamoto spoke in a low voice as he began to announce the name that will decide Hitsugaya's fate. "You will be battling with…"

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A/N: Suspense, suspense, suspense. Actually, that was on purpose since well, I haven't announced the two finalists yet though it's pretty obvious as to who they are. There won't be any previews for the next chapter as well, so I'm kinda leaving everyone in suspense. (cackles) Well, I'm not _**that **_bad…The prequel to this story will be up very soon! The One will be published like in an hour's time so don't be too disheartened about this little cliffhanger.

The two finalists are… (drumroll) Kuchiki Byakuya!

Byakuya: …

And…Kurotsuchi Mayuri!

Mayuri: _Ara! _I'm a finalist!

Ok, the final round of voting! Choose wisely, because it'll determine who Hitsugaya will fight. The ending will be the same, with Hitsugaya winning whoever is chosen, so still the same advice: don't choose a captain you like. Choose the one you don't like because he will be beaten up _**very very VERY **_badly. There won't be any Shinigami Zukan for this chapter, so for those who faithfully read Shinigami Zukan Golden! I apologise for no chapter this time round.

Edit: Holy crap, I forgot to add in the meaning of my OC's name! XD You all should know what kurayami means by now, so lemme tell you about yuurei. It means ghost or spirit.


	15. 十五　じゅうご

Author's Note: This is it. The decisive and long-awaited battle between captain and captain. Hitsugaya's fate; either as an exiled shinigami or being a captain once more. Of course, he will most definitely be captain again…Just saying that for more suspense, you know? XD

I'm very grateful to those who have reviewed. I have such sweet reviews. I have never received such beautiful reviews in my life, such as Mei Fire's and Synsacra's. I love you both so much for such beautiful reviews! (Of course it's not that kind of love…It's more of gratefulness. You get my drift? XD)

Ok…Here we go!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 15 – Captain VS Captain! Koori's Permanent Materialization…

"You will be battling with…" Yamamoto stopped in mid-sentence. He stole glances at Byakuya and Mayuri, both of whom had different reactions. Byakuya looked away from Yamamoto's gaze while Mayuri was grinning away sadistically. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, was staring at the two nervously. Now he got the hint. It was either Kuchiki-taichou or Kurotsuchi-taichou, both of whom Hitsugaya dreaded to fight. Hyourinmaru was trying to calm him down in his inner world, but Hitsugaya just plainly couldn't. Koori and Fuyu no Hana couldn't get him to calm down either, and his nervousness was starting to crack some of the ice in the inner world. Yamamoto then looked at Hitsugaya straight in the eye. "Actually…" Yamamoto resumed by beginning another sentence. "I have changed my chosen candidate for this. I hope my initial choice won't mind it."

Hitsugaya tried not to gulp. He would rather fight Mayuri than fight Byakuya. It'd be instant death if he were to fight the stoic captain of the 6th Division. Yamamoto then spoke once more, "Kuchiki-taichou, would you do the honor of challenging Toushirou-kun to a match?"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Oh no. Oh shit. Oh crap. Oh no. Oh shit. Oh crap. Oh no…" Hitsugaya thought mostly to himself._

_Just calm down, Toushirou._

"_How can you expect me to calm down when I have to fight with Kuchiki-taichou?!"_

_You're not the type who gets so nervous, Toushirou! I just told you that last night! Anyway, if you don't calm down, your anxiety is going to affect your battle, and we can't have that._

"_I know you're going to say that with all our powers combined, I'll be okay, but…this is __**Kuchiki Byakuya**__ we're talking about! I have never fought with him before…but seeing him fight is already enough to make me feel…inferior to him…" Hitsugaya worriedly admitted._

_Look…Hyourinmaru, Fuyu no Hana and I will be with you all the way, so don't you worry._

"_But…I have yet to use the hollow techniques and I'm not sure if they'll be enough…"_

_**I'm **__here, okay? Just listen to my instructions and you'll be fine, trust me._

"…_Really?"_

_Yes, really. Just trust me on this, Toushirou. Trust Fuyu no Hana, and trust Hyourinmaru. We'll help you pull through._

"_Arigatou…Koori."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Yamamoto had chosen the battle to be held at the 11th Division's training grounds because the area is large enough to handle great deals of reiatsu. Moreover, the training grounds were specially made to withstand high pressure due to the fact that the 11th Division was the Fighting Division, thus the training grounds were customized purely for fighting purposes. Those were the very few reasons why Yamamoto had specially chosen the 11th Division training grounds as the fighting arena. Sitting down on the chair specially prepared for his arrival, Yamamoto announced the start of the suspenseful battle.

Hitsugaya was standing haori-less at the left of the training grounds while Byakuya was standing at the right. Hyourinmaru was bound to his right hand with the sword band tied securely around his hand to ensure a firm grip on the hilt. (A/N: If you go to the Bleach official movie website for DiamondDust Rebellion located on my profile, and check the 'New!' section about the characters, you can find Hitsu there with this kind of description. Call it a spoiler if you wish.) Byakuya was already on a ready stance, Senbonzakura situated perfectly on his right grip. As they heard Yamamoto shout the decisive word 'Begin!' Byakuya charged towards Hitsugaya with the use of shunpo.

Hitsugaya brought up Hyourinmaru's blade to shield him from impacting with Senbonzakura. It was bad enough Byakuya had a terrifying and powerful zanpakutou at hand; now he wouldn't even spare Hitsugaya from his mastered shunpo. Hitsugaya began fearing for his life until Koori came along to calm him down once more. He tried to calm down, but he couldn't muster up enough strength to counter Byakuya's sudden attack. It was like as if his arms had turned to jelly. _Toushirou, would you just calm down?! _He heard Koori shout at him continuously. _I told you anxiety would affect your battling performance! Just have faith in me. And your zanpakutous._

"_I'll try, Koori." _Even though that was what his mind had spoken, that wasn't what his heart was thinking. He just couldn't stop his heart from thumping so wildly, so out of control. If this carried on any longer, he might just run out of breath like an asthmatic. And it had only been five minutes since the battle started, dammit! It'd be impossible for him to carry on and emerge victorious!

_Toushirou… _Koori's voice growled into a warning that Hitsugaya knew all too well. _If you keep up like this, I'll have no choice but to…_

"_Fine, fine, Koori! Tell me what I should do!"_

_Well, that's obvious…Duck._

And duck he did. Hitsugaya had barely managed to avoid Senbonzakura's swift slash. Byakuya was getting a bit annoyed with the boy dazing off into space. It would be too easy to win the fight. But Byakuya didn't like easy wins, oh no. He much preferred to win a fight that would require him to use his full potential, just like that fight with the ryoka, Kurosaki Ichigo. Even though he had lost, he was _**this **_close to winning. Byakuya might seem stoic and uncaring, but as a captain, he could feel the thrills of winning a hard-fought battle. After all, he hasn't had a tough fight recently. Perhaps a battle with a premature vaizard would start up his lax muscles.

Hitsugaya didn't exactly dare to lift Hyourinmaru and slash Byakuya with it. He had this fear that Byakuya might just call out his zanpakutou's shikai if he did so, and he might just get injured enough to lose consciousness if Byakuya were to call out Senbonzakura for help. _You can't carry on like this! You have to __**fight**_

"_But…"_

_No buts! Don't forget who you are right now, Toushirou! You are no longer the child captain of the 10__th__ Division; not anymore. You are Soul Society's heavenly guardian right now. _Hitsugaya stopped and hesitated, allowing Byakuya to charge towards him once more. Catching that action with his sharp eyes, Hitsugaya shielded himself from the attack using Hyourinmaru again while trying to pay attention to Koori. _A heavenly guardian does not, and I repeat, does __**not **__lose his own self. You are now the heavenly guardian; you must not lose yourself all because of some silly fight to show your loyalty. Do you understand?_

"…"

_I asked you, do you understand, Toushirou?! _

Hitsugaya's eyes blazed with ice cold reiatsu as he jumped out of the corner, landing on the center of the 11th Division training grounds. Byakuya turned, only to meet with Hyourinmaru's silvery blade. The noble dodged, but not fast enough. His cheek left cheek was cut by Hyourinmaru's blade with blood dripping from the wound. _"Yes I do!"_

Hitsugaya began raising his reiatsu.

Byakuya followed suit.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…_It seems that your little wielder is getting too immersed in teaching my wielder what to do in a fight like this," Hyourinmaru mumbled quietly as he watched the bedridden Koori __scream questions meant for Hitsugaya to answer. Fuyu no Hana walked further away from the cave while Hyourinmaru followed. "Both you and I know that Koori might just materialize himself to protect Toushirou on impulse if Toushirou were to be on the brink of death."_

"_Yes, I do know that," Fuyu no Hana mumbled back just as quietly. She stopped and turned, her piercing ice blue eyes staring into Hyourinmaru's blazing crimson orbs. "We have to prevent that from happening."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya noticed the change in Byakuya's reiatsu. It was quite a dangerous change, not to mention a bit too rushed as well. Hitsugaya charged towards Byakuya with both hands on Hyourinmaru's hilt and was about to land a hit when the overpowering reiatsu from Byakuya brushed him away like a fly. Hitsugaya landed on the dirty soil with a thud before jumping back up again, raising his reiatsu to match Byakuya's. Easy.

Byakuya raised the tip of Senbonzakura's blade to eye level. He was getting ready. Ready to just destroy the white-haired boy even if it was just shikai, it should be enough, Byakuya reckoned. "Chire, Senbonzakura." Senbonzakura's blade split into many thousands of tiny pink blades that resembled the petals of the sakura flowers. Drifting along slowly, the blades awaited orders from Byakuya.

_Shikai, huh?_

"_So, almighty heavenly guardian before me, what do I do know?" Hitsugaya's voice became dry and sarcastic. He was afraid of this happening…That dreadful shikai…_

_That's simple. You either call out Hyourinmaru or Fuyu no Hana. I suggest using Hyourinmaru first before you impale that stuck-up noble with my dear zanpakutou._

"_Why yours and not mine?"_

_Because you should treat this as a real training session for you to master Fuyu no Hana. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Toushirou! Now it's great timing for you to use the heavenly zanpakutou._

"…_Heavenly zanpakutou?"_

_Do I need to teach you common sense? A heavenly guardian obviously wields a heavenly zanpakutou._

"_Ohh."_

'_Ohh' your head__. That guy's zanpakutou's gonna rip you to shreds if you don't make up your mind now!_

Hitsugaya ended the conversation there temporarily to raise his reiatsu even more. Making a silent note to Hyourinmaru, Hitsugaya jumped out of the way before Senbonzakura's mini blades came flying towards him. Byakuya withdrew his hand and looked up at the white-haired boy who was in mid-air. He then raised his hand up for Senbonzakura's blades to charge towards Hitsugaya before Hitsugaya could even think about hurting him. Unfortunately for the noble, Hitsugaya was all ready to say the magic words. "Souten ni zase, Hyourinmaru!" The ice dragon manifested from Hitsugaya's reiatsu came crashing down at Byakuya and his blade minions, forcing the blades out of the way. It was about to strike Byakuya when he shunpo-ed away just in time. Hitsugaya landed on the training grounds gracefully.

_Yeah, that's it, Toushirou! Keep it up and it should be okay…Unless of course, he calls out for bankai._

"…_You should've warned me beforehand…Now Kuchiki-taichou's pissed and he…looks like he's gonna kill me anytime now."_

_Nonsense. He can't be __**that **__temperamental._

"_Kuchiki Byakuya isn't. Kuchiki-__**taichou **__is."_

_What's the difference? Both start with Kuchiki._

_Hitsugaya shot Koori a glare mentally. "Kuchiki-taichou has a…__**tendency **__to lose his temper when fighting. However, when he's not fighting and not at meetings, he's just Kuchiki Byakuya, just like all the other captains usually are, like when Kyouraku-taichou isn't out drinking and is attending meetings. He'd be called Kyouraku-taichou, but if he's out drinking, he's just known as Kyouraku Shunsui. Simple as that." Hitsugaya gulped a little. "Of course…it's all about the personality change in captains…"_

_OHHHH._

"'_Ohhhh' your head this time round, Koori." _Sure enough, just as Hitsugaya predicted, Byakuya was gathering up reiatsu that would be enough to call out the dangerous, captain-exclusive bankai, with the exception of Ichigo, Renji and Ikkaku, of course. One could feel the high, choking air pressure in the arena. Since the captains were the only ones allowed to witness the fight, they weren't highly affected by Byakuya's fluctuation in reiatsu. Some 11th Division members who were present had to be evacuated from the division buildings, just in case. Hitsugaya got into a ready stance. _"Here it comes, Koori. Kuchiki-taichou's bankai."_

Byakuya raised Senbonzakura at waist level, the blade facing towards the earth. He let go of Senbonzakura's hilt, letting the zanpakutou drop and disappear into the ground dramatically. "Ban…kai," Byakuya muttered stoically. Two rows of big blades appeared next to Byakuya the next moment. "Senbonzakura…Kageyoshi."

_Toushirou! Forget what I said about using Fuyu no Hana and use bankai now!_

"_Why?"_

_I have a plan! It'll definitely get that arrogant pretty boy startled!_

"…_If you say so…"_

As the many thousands of tiny, delicate pink blades – more than the ones before – raced towards the slim and slender figure of Hitsugaya, Hitsugaya shunpo-ed out of the way, causing the blades to collide with the walls. There was an explosion before the familiar pink glow appeared from within the thick cloud of smoke as Byakuya stepped out of it, his hand stretched out. "Don't get cocky, boy," the noble warned as the blades appeared from behind him. "You won't be so lucky every time."

"Speak for yourself," Hitsugaya scowled, not enjoying the 6th Division captain's company at all. His grip on Hyourinmaru's hilt tightened. His reiatsu level fluctuated and was on even level with Byakuya's, if not, even higher. Thick white mist burst out from his body, covering about twelve meters within his radius. His icy reiatsu froze everything within the twelve meter radius and it could've frozen Byakuya as well if not for his accurate evasiveness. Byakuya watched, his face void of any expression whatsoever. "Bankai!" Hitsugaya shouted with another burst of icy cold reiatsu. Ice began forming from Hyourinmaru, creeping all the way up to Hitsugaya's shoulders, sprouting the ice dragon wings. The right hand holding onto Hyourinmaru's hilt had ice shaped in the head of a dragon, and his left hand had ice shaped in the claw of a dragon instead. Feet made of ice covered Hitsugaya's own feet and a tail formed from the ice. The three signature flowers of ice appeared behind him. "Daiguren Hyourinmaru!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Oh no, oh no…" Fuyu no Hana gasped. "He's using bankai…He's using bankai…" She knelt on the snow as iced tears fell to the snowy grounds. "What should I do…? What should I do…? Koori…Koori-chan will…He'll…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Byakuya remained indifferent and stony-faced. As Hitsugaya hovered over him using the pair of dragon wings, he realized that Hitsugaya had the advantage of the skies while he had the disadvantage of the earth. Well, he thought to himself, he, too, would soon have the advantage of the skies. "Shuukei, Senbonzakura Kageyoshi." At the command, the tiny sakura-like blades merged together to form one single bright white katana. On his back, Byakuya had sprouted pure white dragon-like wings himself. Hitsugaya looked at Senbonzakura Kageyoshi's second form surface as though Byakuya was intending to use the wings to reach the skies just like he did. Now _**that **_would be interesting. No one had ever witnessed the noble Kuchiki Byakuya make use of these wings to fly before. (A/N: It has never been seen as to whether Byakuya's wings can be used to fly. I just assume he can use them to fly.)

"Now, we shall take the battle to the skies," Byakuya spoke in a low and waning tone so soft that Hitsugaya had to strain his ears in order to catch what he was saying. Without warning, Byakuya had used shunpo to fly into the sky and reach Hitsugaya's altitude to use his pure white katana to slash at him. Hitsugaya moved out of the way, avoiding a serious hit.

_Right. Now he's making use of the sky, which is __**your **__domain. Yours and Hyourinmaru's, that is._

"_So what do I do now?"_

_Keep on using bankai techniques till all of your petals melt away._

"_What?! Are you insane? I'd lose my bankai and I doubt Hyourinmaru can regenerate fast enough to fight Kuchiki-taichou just in time!"_

_I said I had a plan, Toushirou. I'll explain when all of your petals melt away._

"_Fine. I'll trust you, like what you said."_

Hitsugaya flew far away from Byakuya. He brought up Hyourinmaru to neck level, the zanpakutou blade exuding mist. The entire air surrounding the two captain-class shinigami became cold. It was so cold frost was beginning to form on Byakuya's wings. Pillars of beautifully-shaped ice manifested from the moisture in the air surrounded Byakuya, thus trapping the dark-haired noble. Byakuya had no way out. "Sennen Hyourou," Hitsugaya muttered quietly, causing the pillars of ice to move in closer to a trapped Byakuya. They collided with each other and all that could be heard was a sick cracking sound coming from within the enclosed pillar ice cage. An entire flower disintegrated.

With a burst of reiatsu, Byakuya crushed the pillars of ice and re-appeared with cuts and bruises all over his body. His shihakushou and haori were tattered, and some bits of the black cloth were beginning to droop. Byakuya was getting more and more pissed by the second. He was getting more and more injuries while the boy still had none. It was hurting his pride and dignity as captain of the 6th Division. Raising Hyourinmaru high up in the air, Hitsugaya then shouted out, "Ryuusenka!" before hurling himself towards Byakuya. Byakuya shielded himself from the attack with his white katana, but Hitsugaya's reiatsu was at so high a level that it managed to crack and slice the white katana. A shocked Byakuya felt something cold freezing and clotting up his right shoulder. His cold eyes traveled to his shoulder. Hyourinmaru's blade was stabbed right there, and ice from the blade found its way into his shoulder. The ice spread to his right arm slowly, numbing it. Another flower disintegrated.

Byakuya's left hand clutched onto the blade infecting his arm with the disease of ice and forced it out, blood gushing out from the wound as he did so. Hitsugaya flew backwards from the force. He tilted his head to look at the number of flowers he had left. It was a lone flower with four pathetic petals. He sighed. Now it was time to test out Daiguren Hyourinmaru's newfound ability. It should be enough to cause this last flower to melt away if used continuously, Hitsugaya predicted. "Hyouketsu Kaze!" A strong blast of icy wind struck Byakuya right on the chest. With another call of Hyouketsu Kaze, the icy wind struck Byakuya again on the chest. Byakuya tried to move, but he couldn't. It was hard to move around agilely with such harsh weather conditions. Moreover, his entire being was numbed by the Hyouketsu Kaze technique. It was impossible to even move a muscle. In total, Hitsugaya had sacrificed fourteen of Hyouketsu Kaze before the last flower disintegrated.

"_I hope you know what you're doing, Koori…"_

_Trust me, I know what I'm doing._

Before long, Hitsugaya felt something…new, rather than the usual breaking of the ice due to the disappearance of the flowers. He felt much more power circulating throughout his entire bloodstream. It was definitely something he hadn't experienced before. It was both thrilling and frightening to the white-haired vaizard. Ice began forming from the middle of his chest and spread throughout his body, encasing it in a thick cage of ice. The ice dragon wings grew to an even larger size than before, maybe about three times the size? The tail grew to about twice its original size. As the ice crept up to Hitsugaya's neck, it formed the hollow mask of a dragon's head which resembled Hyourinmaru. From which the ice had come from – the middle of the chest –, a large stalagmite extended out. It then burst into small particles, revealing the gaping hole in the chest. Byakuya and the rest of the captains watched wide-eyed.

"This is…Hitsugaya-kun's full hollow form?!" Ukitake exclaimed, taking a step back.

"It would seem so," Yamamoto replied his student before silence had befallen again.

_**Now **__do you understand why?_

"_Yeah…Care to explain?"_

_Before you acknowledged my existence, those petals of yours acted as a sort of timer as to when your bankai would shatter, am I right? Well, once you've acknowledged me, those petals served as a timer to the formation of your full hollow form, which is inaccessible to all vaizards except you; you can trust me on that one._

_Hitsugaya was mentally staring wide-eyed at his previous incarnation. "I…see…"_

_Now, go kick some Byakuya butt!_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_This is worse than I had imagined…" Fuyu no Hana whispered. "Looks like the inevitable is going to happen…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Don't think that you have defeated me," Byakuya spoke seriously, raising a sealed Senbonzakura. "I can still try and stop you." He fell from the sky, his wings no longer there, and Hitsugaya was about to fly down to pick him when he heard an unfamiliar word from Byakuya. "Hisshikei Senbonzakura Kageyoshi." At once, the same dragon-like wings sprouted from his back and Byakuya flew back up into the sky. The wings grew larger and larger till they were even larger than Hitsugaya's. The wings then grew to a wingspan of about three times the size of Hitsugaya's, which was _**very **_huge, and they stopped growing. The wings then burst into an array of familiar pink blades, revealing another pair of wings on Byakuya's back to keep him airborne. Making use of the sun's rays and their reflective abilities, the blades reflected the blinding light of the sun's rays into Hitsugaya's hollow-like eyes, blinding him temporarily. Hissing in pain, Hitsugaya made an effort to rub and cover his eyes from the blinding light when the blades began rushing towards him, ready to rip his small figure up into even smaller pieces of flesh.

No wonder this third form is called…_**Hisshikei.**_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Toushirou!" Koori yelled out concernedly, taking in deep breaths to calm himself down. He jumped out of bed, even though he was supposedly bedridden, and rushed out of the cave into the deathly cold blizzard storm in the dreamscape__. "Fuyu no Hana, we go! Now!"_

"_But…Koori, you'll…"_

"_Kuso!" he cursed in frustration. "I don't care about that right now! If we don't go out there, Toushirou might seriously get himself killed!"_

_Fuyu no Hana hesitated, then sighed. "Very well, Koori-sama." Her spirit them faded away and transformed into a translucent icy breeze that drifted towards Koori's outstretched hand. Feeling the familiar weight of his zanpakutou resting on his palm, Koori mustered up a high level of reiatsu and jumped into the endless frozen skies of the dreamscape._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya Toushirou was expecting death. But death had not come looking for him. Opening his blurry teal eyes, all Hitsugaya could see was someone's shihakushou.

…Byakuya?

No, it wasn't the noble. Why the hell would the noble want to protect him from his own attack? That's insane. Hitsugaya tried blinking his eyes to focus. Ah, it was getting clearer and clearer. There wasn't a captain haori in sight for the shinigami who was protecting him. He tried blinking again. His vision was almost back to normal. The shinigami right in front of him was about the same size as he, if not, smaller. He also had distinctive hair as white as snow, and it was spiky, just like his was, except that the shinigami in front of his didn't gel it up like he did every morning. As the head turned to face him, Hitsugaya's eyes widened in surprise and that was when he just noticed that he was no longer in his hollow form, but in his bankai form. Could it be…? That the ice from the hollow form was actually…?

"Man…I _**always **_have to be the one protecting you, don't I, Toushirou?"

It was.

Koori.

_**The **_Hitsugaya Koorimasu had actually materialized right there, through and through, period.

"Well?" Koori's voice snapped Hitsugaya out of his confused daze. "Don't just stand there! Finish him!"

Hitsugaya looked at Koori's wounds. Sure, he was quite badly cut up, but the blood had already been clotted up with ice and if Koori was his usual self, then he must be alright. Hitsugaya nodded as a form of understanding and spread his dragon wings of ice. Flying towards Byakuya at full speed, Hitsugaya's free hand traveled down to Hyourinmaru's blade. Byakuya looked at the speeding white and black blur, his pupils dilated. Whatever Koori did must've had given him quite a terrible shock! Usually, his face was the one that was stony. Now, it was his entire body that had turned all stony.

It was something you don't see every day, that's for sure.

"Ryuusenka!" Hitsugaya called out as his left hand left the blade, exuding some cold mist from the even colder reiatsu. Bringing Hyourinmaru forward, the blade struck Byakuya on the shoulder again, but Hitsugaya was careful not to let the ice flow throughout Byakuya's body, in case the fatal Ryuusenka might just freeze the 6th Division captain to death. With that, the wings on Byakuya's back shattered into tiny pink blades which fell to the ground like wilting petals. Byakuya hung there limply, his shoulder stuck to Hyourinmaru's blade as a form of support. Hitsugaya hoped he didn't just kill the noble. Luckily for him, he could feel Byakuya tensing up and stirring about, so he was pretty much alive.

"The battle is over!" Yamamoto announced, standing up and banging his staff. "Hitsugaya Toushirou!"

"_H-hai!_" came Hitsugaya's panicked reply.

"You are hereby no longer an exiled shinigami and shall return to Soul Society as captain once more! Return to your division immediately for rest!" Yamamoto gave his order.

His heart thumping with wild happiness, Hitsugaya bowed and thanked, "_Hai! Arigatou gozaimasu, _soutaichou!"

Yamamoto, however, furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the other white-haired shinigami floating in the air. In his hand was a zanpakutou of a pure white hilt and a flower bud-like guard. The blade glistened in the sun, giving a sense of unmatched beauty. Koori narrowed his sapphire orbs at the old man. Yamamoto spoke once more, "On second thought, Hitsugaya-taichou…"

"Yes, soutaichou?" Hitsugaya enquired, hoping that Yamamoto wouldn't remove him from his post again with him only enjoying five seconds of his captain glory.

"Come to my office immediately, and um…" Yamamoto trailed off as he turned to leave for his office. "…bring that child with you as well." Without waiting for an answer, he walked away towards the direction of his division office. Hitsugaya looked at Koori with a quizzical look but the previous incarnation just floated back down to the ground, sheathing Fuyu no Hana which was strapped to his hand with a pure white sword band, like how Hitsugaya tied his own sword band to secure his grip on Hyourinmaru's hilt. Koori sighed as he loosened the sword band and hung it over his right shoulder where he secured Fuyu no Hana. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, released Byakuya and handed him over to Unohana for healing. Hitsugaya then flew over to join Koori and re-sealed Hyourinmaru in the meantime.

Unohana looked at Byakuya concernedly. The usually stoic captain was still dazed from shock. Unohana waved a hand in front of Byakuya's face but he remained in a trance. Unohana then tried talking him out of it. "…Kuchiki-taichou?"

"…"

"Is…" Unohana glanced at Koori before resuming eye contact with the noble. "Is everything alright?"

"…I can't believe it…"

"Eh?"

"That child…" Byakuya muttered as his head robotically turned to face Koori. "That child…has such power…I was no match for him…" was all Byakuya managed to whisper before his eyelids closed and lost his footing. He could've had a nasty fall if not for Unohana and some of the other captains' support. Being the closest to him, Unohana managed to hear Byakuya mutter out one last sentence. "…What _**is **_that monstrosity…?"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Soutaichou…You called for us?" Hitsugaya asked politely as he opened the door of the 1st Division office after knocking. He allowed a reluctant and glaring Koori to enter first before he entered and closed the door.

"Yes, Hitsugaya-taichou. Take a seat, this is going to take a while." Hitsugaya bowed and took a seat while Koori just folded his arms and leaned against the wall. Hitsugaya would've given him a reprimanding but he shouldn't behave in such a way in front of the soutaichou, so Hitsugaya just bore with it. Besides, Yamamoto didn't seem to be taken aback by Koori's rudeness. "Ah…" Yamamoto sighed, as if he were greatly amused. "You are still mad at me, aren't you, Koori?"

"Hmph."

Hitsugaya looked at Koori before looking back at Yamamoto, surprised that the two actually knew each other already. It was no surprise, to be truthful, otherwise Koori wouldn't be so rude as to tell Hitsugaya occasionally that Yamamoto was an old bastardy geezer. If Yamamoto were to hear that, he'd blow his top and burn him to ashes with his zanpakutou. Hitsugaya asked, "Soutaichou, you know Koori?"

"Yes, but only recently. Before we learned that Inoue Orihime had gone to Hueco Mondo. That was when I met Koori."

Koori muttered something that sounded like 'as if' but neither of the captains present could catch what Koori had just commented. Koori paused before saying, "I don't really care about when we met, you bastard. I cared about _**what happened **_during the time we met."

"Oh yes, that moment." Yamamoto was getting more and more amused with every sentence. Hitsugaya was amazed. Normally, Yamamoto would attempt to fry whoever called him a bastard, but in this case, it was entirely different! "I sincerely apologise about what had happened, Koori."

Hitsugaya felt a dangerous rise in the reiatsu level in the room and it obviously came from Koori. "You freakin' _**killed **_me and all you can say is 'I sincerely apologise'?!" Hitsugaya wanted to cower away from Koori's wrath. His sapphire eyes, once cool and calm like the ocean, were now burning with high and dangerous reiatsu like the passionate but fatal flames of a bushfire. What kind of enmity did Koori and Yamamoto have?! When Hitsugaya felt the reiatsu in the room lower considerably, he saw that Koori was calming down slowly and taking deep breaths. "Never mind…Forget that for now, bastard. Toushirou's present, just so you know."

"So you haven't told him at all. Well, then we shall forget it for now," Yamamoto spoke patiently and kindly. "I shall head back to the topic. Hitsugaya-taichou, during the middle of the fight, all of the captains have witnessed your full hollow form surfacing. However, when Kuchiki-taichou was just about to impale you, this child," Yamamoto paused to point at Koori who stuck his tongue out at the old man. "…materialized from the ice of your hollow form to protect you."

Hitsugaya stared at Koori as if expressing gratitude. Koori just rolled his eyes as if to say 'your welcome'. Either that, or Koori just found it seriously lame and pointless to even come here in the first place. "Materialization is normal for every vaizard," Koori spoke, as if that one sentence explained everything.

"But now, the point is, are you able to return to Hitsugaya-taichou's mind and body?" Yamamoto asked challengingly.

"Sure I can, you old geezer," Koori spat. "I'll tell you this now, you won't see me again tomorrow morning."

"Then that is a relief. Hitsugaya-taichou," Yamamoto turned to face Hitsugaya. "Please make sure that he marks that promise. You are dismissed."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Koori," Hitsugaya began as he changed out of his black kimono and hakama, leaving only the white kimono and hakama underneath. "You shouldn't have talked to Yamamoto-soutaichou like that! He might have you executed!" (A/N: I'm just assuming shinigami sleep with only their white half of the shihakushou. Hitsugaya just looks cuter in just the white hakama, mainly because of his hair and well, he looks like he's sleeping in white pajamas. I find that really adorable!)

"Soutaichou this, soutaichou that…" Koori grumbled as he lied down on the mattress on the floor next to Hitsugaya's, pulling the blanket over him. "Don't you _**ever **_think about rebelling at all?"

Hitsugaya stared at Koori wide-eyed. _**This **_was the inner hollow who claimed that he had all of Hitsugaya's memories and experience? By what Koori had just said, it all seemed like a big fat lie. Hitsugaya took a seat next to Koori as he got ready to sleep as well. "Well…I _**have**_. Once. Don't you remember?"

"Hmmm…Oh yeah, I remember. That time, you actually fought with that ugly strawberry. I remember that fight clearly." (A/N: Reference to the HitsuIchi fight in The DiamondDust Rebellion. I'm just sort of making use of that trailer. I most definitely have _**not **_watched anything else about the movie.) Koori looked away and closed his eyes before sighing. He opened his eyes again, now expressing sorrow. "You know, if you weren't so young, I'd bet that old geezer would appoint you as the next soutaichou of Soul Society."

"…That's too ambitious, don't you think?"

"Nobody is ever too ambitious for anything, Toushirou," Koori spoke as-a-matter-of-factly.

It was Hitsugaya's turn to roll his eyes and change the subject. "Anyway, Koori, I thought you told Yamamoto-soutaichou that you'll so-called disappear tomorrow. So why are you still materialized?"

There was a grim pause in answering. Koori then decided to give his piece of explanation. "I was about to say that next, but…" Sighing away, Koori brought his blanket closer to him till it covered half of his face. "Toushirou…I'm stuck like this."

Hitsugaya sat up in his bed. "What?"

"Toushirou, I…I can't go back into your body…"

Hitsugaya blinked as his breaths quickened. "But…but…I thought you said…"

Koori turned over to glare at Hitsugaya. "That was to shut that old bastard up."

"The thing is, you lied, Koori! What if Yamamoto-soutaichou finds you? And besides, why can't you go back into my mind?"

"…It's permanent, Toushirou…" Koori sighed, closing his eyes. "I don't really know why myself, but…it's _**permanent. **_I'm stuck like this. Forever."

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Hisshikei - Inevitable Death Scene/ Scene of Inevitable Death. A made-up third form to Byakuya's bankai, the wings on his back shatter into millions of the sakura-like blades while another pair of wings, supported by reiatsu, sprout out from his back to maintain stability in the air. It is called the Inevitable Death Scene because the blades reflect the light of the sun, if Byakuya is not using this technique at night, to blind the target before moving on to slashing and cutting the target into pieces. It is hard to avoid; nearly 99.9 percent impossible to avoid due to the blinding effect.

A/N: Of course I'm not that cruel to make Koori's materialization permanent. However, he _**will **_be stuck like this until the last few chapters of the story, so you can expect a little bit more fun and mystery in the future few chapters before the _**real **_serious and dramatic stuff begins. I'm warning you; it's gonna get damn OOC and damn dramatic later on, not to mention damn suspenseful. Just a warning. Not to scare you.

To clear up something about the timeline of this fanfic, I'll just say this in case any of you are a bit confused. Earlier I said that the Hueco Mondo arc doesn't happen, right? Take it that I replaced it with an arc of my own. This took place after Orihime went to Hueco Mondo with Ulquiorra, but she only went there after Hitsugaya returned to Soul Society in chapter thirteen, so there's a little twist in the time frame. The reason why Hitsugaya's team returned to Soul Society is revealed in The One. Yet again, another twist in the time frame. I'll elaborate more on the timeline as the story progresses.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_What is it, Kage? Another nightmare?"_

"…_No, Merenaito. It's nothing."_

"_I can sense it, Kage. You had another nightmare. It's the same one, isn't it?"_

"…"

"_Answer me, dammit."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Now it's __**my **__turn to ask you. You had another nightmare too, right, Merenaito?"_

"_Oh, Kage…"_

"_You're not the only one anyway, Merenaito. Meian had another one."_

"_Not Meian too…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Your reiatsus are driving me __**nuts**__. I can't get a wink of sleep at all. Care to explain why?"_

"_If you won't mind, Toushirou, would you let us sleep here just for the night?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I swear I'm gonna puke from all of these nightmare fits from you g__irls…"_

"_Oi! Didn't __**you **__have nightmares too when we were in the material world?!"_

"_Yes I did, and I handled them better than you girls are handling yours, thank you very much."_

"_Oh, damn you, Toushirou."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

It's gonna get more mysterious, dramatic and humorous the next chapter. It focuses more on the Kurayami sisters and Hitsugaya so if you don't mind, you can read the next chapter. I'll be adding more about Fuyu no Hana's worries in the next chapter too, as well as a hint as to what kind of abilities the Kurayami sisters' zanpakutous have, so it'll be a little bit more exciting too.

And for those who are disappointed that Mayuri or any other captain you had in mind didn't get to fight, don't worry. In the upcoming sequel, The End of Soul Society, Hitsugaya _**and **_Koori will have the chance to fight against every single captain of the Gotei 13, _**including **_the Kurayami sisters. Like I said in my profile, it'll contain a lot of bloody fighting. This is just an insight to what you can expect in the sequel. And for those who managed to get Byakuya to fight, congratulations, because Hitsu will have another chance to fight Byakuya again in The End of Soul Society.

I hope this piece of news made everyone happy. (smiles)


	16. 十六  じゅうろく

Author's Note: I really hope everyone has enjoyed the fight Hitsugaya had with Byakuya. I had a lot of fun writing it too.

This chapter, the next chapter and the chapter after that will mostly focus on the Kurayami sisters' and Hitsugaya's pasts (which I obviously made up) so it'll be really dramatic. The mystery part is that the Kurayami sisters will not, I repeat, will not reveal their entire life stories in these next few chapters and _**that's **_when the hellish drama comes in.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 16 – The Nightmares which Plague Their Minds

The faint moonlight seeped in through the transparent window in the newly-appointed 5th Division captain's room. The light shone on her troubled face, clearly exposing her furrowed brows and tightly shut eyes which were refusing to open even just a little. In the darkness of her room, one could never have noticed her terribly trembling hands and her profuse sweating. However, it was easy to hear her whimpering every now and then, as well as the frequent crunching of her mattress on the floor from the tossing and turning. Her right hand gripped onto her pillow while her left hand gripped onto the poor crumbled up blanket. Small glistening tears dripped drop by drop as she whimpered once more.

Clearly…she was having a nightmare.

"Please…" her cracked and shaky voice begged in her sleep. "Please…just let me go…Don't…No…Don't…Don't, don't throw me down there! No! No!!!" In the midst of her nightmare, her voice had stopped calling out for whoever she was dreaming of. Kage couldn't control her reiatsu any longer and the reiatsu level in her room – no, _**Seireitei**_ – went up rapidly. Shadows of random sleeping shinigami grew larger and seemed to come to life. The moonlight grew brighter with every beg, casting new shadows on objects. Suddenly she sat up, gasping for air, and her eyes opened quickly. The new shadows faded away while the ones that grew larger returned to their original size.

The door to her room opened with a soft bang and the long-haired Merenaito came rushing to Kage's side, kneeling down and putting her calm hand on Kage's shoulder. "What is it, Kage?" Merenaito asked concernedly. "Another nightmare?"

Kage seemed to have calmed down from Merenaito's soothing touch. "…No, Merenaito. It's nothing."

Merenaito, of course, wouldn't have that kind of reply as a satisfactory answer to her question. "I can sense it, Kage. You had another nightmare." Her eyes narrowed to slits. "It's the same one, isn't it?"

"…"

She didn't lose her temper. She never did, and never will. "Answer me, dammit," Merenaito whispered, her voice full of sureness and concern.

"I said it's nothing, Merenaito," Kage replied stubbornly, lying back down on her mattress and covering herself with the blanket. "Just go back to sleep."

Merenaito stared at Kage for a while before sighing quite loudly and standing up. She walked to the edge of the door and was about to close it as she left when she whispered loudly, "It's not good to keep it caged up, Kage. You'll have to let it out eventually. That's my advice to you. Good night."

And the door closed quietly.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Her long silky jet-black hair was all sprawled out in a messy manner. Her face was being covered by the blanket and her hands, clutching onto the blanket like as if it were her life. Alas, she who had comforted had gotten another nightmare of her own as she tossed and turned, and tossed and turned. Her room was deprived of windows and any sources of light and heat. She lived in complete darkness. In her surroundings, which was the whole of Seireitei, the moon's glow was beginning to fade away as a blanket of darkness began creeping up from the Soukyoku hill. It wasn't her fault her reiatsu was fluctuating like hell; she wouldn't admit it but it was all because of some stupid nightmare. She wasn't crying and her hands weren't trembling as terribly as Kage's were, so it was safe to assume that her nightmare wasn't as terrifying as Kage's. Nevertheless, it just seemed horrible enough.

A soft but sudden tap on her shoulder woke her up.

The sad and cold golden eyes stared back into equally sad diamonds that lost their shine. "Kage…?"

"Now it's _**my **_turn to ask you," Kage sighed. "You had another nightmare too, right, Merenaito?"

Merenaito avoided Kage's questioning gaze as the nightmare replayed in her head. Trying to get it out of her mind, she begged for comfort in a low whisper, "Oh, Kage…"

Sighing once more, Kage realized that under the cold and seemingly strong-willed exterior of her older sister lied an inquisitive but fragile shell within her. Not like Merenaito would agree to that. She'd probably try and murder someone if she were to be called anything concerning weak. She was _**not **_weak and fragile. She didn't need anyone's protection. At least, that was what Kage perceived of Merenaito, until night time when the three of them – Merenaito, Kage and Meian – had a fit of nightmares which plague them every night. Even though Kage agreed that she had the most horrifying nightmare out of all three of them, she wouldn't deny the fact that her sisters had it worse since they hadn't been through…_**that **_yet. Attempting to comfort her sister, Kage spoke, "You're not the only one anyway." Merenaito tilted her head upwards to face Kage. "Meian had another one."

"Not Meian too…" Judging by the tone of her voice, Kage concluded that Merenaito had finally gained back something precious after being deprived of it for so many decades. She felt happy for her sister. That would mean that they would be back to normal soon.

At least…that was what she _**hoped **_so.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The happy-go-lucky child was sobbing away in her sleep. Tears were streaming down her pale cheeks that appeared rosy and lively in the day, apparently. She was crying oh so horribly. The more she cried, the more her reiatsu began to fluctuate. Her zanpakutou by her side began clanging as it shook like as if an earthquake was occurring. It began to rain heavily as the darkness caused by Merenaito's reiatsu fluctuation started to subside. As the rain got heavier and heavier, sleeping shinigamis' tears streaming down their faces got more and more. It seemed that Meian had some control over someone's emotions. Or rather, maybe that was her zanpakutou's special ability. She was probably going to flood Seireitei if someone didn't wake her up soon.

"Meian! Meian!" Kage yelled in her ear, hoping that her little sister would wake up.

"Meian-chan, please wake up," came Merenaito's calm and soothing voice.

As Meian's bloodshot blue eyes opened slowly, the youngest sister looked at her worried older sisters. She was panting from crying so hard but her breathing began to stabilize upon seeing her sisters' familiar faces. Her zanpakutou stopped shaking and all the commotion outside died down till not a single drop of water was left behind. "Kana…Mezu…" Meian called her sisters by their nicknames as she tried to calm herself down from the nightmare.

Merenaito and Kage gave Meian a comforting hug, and a smile finally found its way to Meian's face.

The next thing she knew, Kage gave her a slap on her back. "I told you not to go back to sleep, you idiot."

Behind that seemingly cold statement, Meian knew, there was a strong hint of pure sisterly love and concern.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Carrying the shaken Meian on her back, Merenaito trudged her way back to her division. Kage was following them, making sure that Merenaito wouldn't accidentally drop Meian due to the fact that the 9th Division was nowhere near the 3th Division. They were about six to seven division buildings apart; Kage was afraid Merenaito wouldn't be able to carry Meian all the way there. She offered to help Merenaito every now and then, but Merenaito wouldn't take up the offer, and neither did she agree to Kage's suggestion to stay in the 5th Division for the night. The reason was Merenaito didn't like the light and Kage had a window in her room. Moreover, Kage's room was too small to fit all of them. It was only a simple room with a mattress, a window and a desk, and that was pretty much all, other than a small wardrobe to accommodate Kage's shihakushous, haori and her zanpakutou. Merenaito doubted that Meian could get a good night's sleep there.

"How about Yuurei's?" Meian suggested. "It's nearer…and I haven't seen Yuurei for some time now."

"Alright, but you'd better behave yourself while you stay over at Yuurei's. I can't have you screaming and crying all night long every night in your division," Merenaito agreed, though she sounded a bit cold. Kage merely smiled at this.

(A/N: I'm not good with the geography of Seireitei, so I just made this part up) However, to get to the 7th Division, Merenaito would have to walk across the heart of Seireitei which was nearly half the size of a human world football field as the thirteen divisions were approximately divided into half with the heart of Seireitei being the 'gap' to show the halved part. The 1st to the 6th Division were on the left side while the 7th to the 13th Division were on the right side. Kage's concern was nearing the peak. "Meru…" Kage referred to Merenaito using her nickname (Meru – Mel). "Let me carry Meian this time."

"No, I'm the oldest. I should be taking all the responsibilities in taking care of my younger sisters," Merenaito stubbornly replied, taking a few steps slowly as she made her way.

"Meru, we're all about the same age, just a few seconds or minutes apart, that's all," Kage retorted. "We share equal responsibilities, ok? Let me carry her; you deserve some rest."

Merenaito sighed, "Fine." Just as Merenaito was about to hand Meian over to Kage who had her arms stretched out, ready for Meian's weight, someone's footsteps could be heard dragging his or her feet on the grounds of Seireitei. Whoever it was must've been really calm since there was no use of shunpo, and there was slow movement in the steps judging by the speed of the sound from the dragging of the feet. Kage was too busy trying to carry Meian to notice the sound, but Merenaito was alert enough to notice. Only when the reiatsu came closer and closer did Kage and Meian finally pay attention. Merenaito's eyes widened. "Toushi?"

Sure enough, Hitsugaya Toushirou walked up calmly to the sisters, not exactly caring about his bed hair and attire. Hyourinmaru wasn't with him, so it meant that he had been kind of expecting them to come. "Your reiatsus are driving me _**nuts**_," Hitsugaya 'greeted'. "I can't get a wink of sleep at all," he continued, folding his arms. "Care to explain why?"

Merenaito stole a glance at her sisters before looking back at Hitsugaya, an idea forming in her mind. "If you won't mind, Toushirou, would you let us sleep here just for the night?"

Hitsugaya arched a silvery white eyebrow. "Here?"

**SLAP**

"She meant your division, dummy head," Kage reprimanded.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Koori, are you daft__ or something?! Why were you so insistent on materializing! You jolly well know that it would get you into trouble!"_

_Koori sighed as he massaged the temples of his forehead, listening to Fuyu no Hana's ever so worried rants. It wasn't that he wasn't used to it; oh no. It was just that he was used to massaging his temples whenever Fuyu no Hana had a chance to rant on and on and on. When situations were severely dire, she'd even resort to spewing colorful vulgarities. Not that Koori minded it, though. Of course, like any other normal shinigami who argued with his or her zanpakutou, Koori got frustrated very easily for a heavenly guardian incarnation. Banging the ice table to shut Fuyu no Hana up, Koori shouted, "Fuyu no Hana! I __**know **__what I'm doing! You have no right to tell me what to do even if the situation demands it!"_

_Fuyu no Hana placed her hands on her waist, her mouth gaping. "Excuse me?!" She tromped over to the young white-haired guardian and pulled his ear, causing him to yelp in pain. "__**I **__am part of __**you**__! If I don't have the right to tell you what you should do, then you shouldn't have the right to tell yourself what to do!"_

_Koori pushed her hand away and rubbed his ear. "We may be a part of each other, Fuyu no Hana, but in the end, we're still two separate beings in one mind and body."_

"_That's the same as denying my existence."_

"_No it's not," Koori retorted stubbornly. "It's the fact. If I deny your existence, there wouldn't even __**be **__Hyourinmaru by Toushirou's side now and he wouldn't have become a captain if that were the case."_

_Fuyu no Hana paused before sighing. "Ok…Fair enough. But right now, my concerns are for you in the near future." Koori kept quiet and Fuyu no Hana continued, "You knew beforehand that if you were to materialize, you'd be stuck outside forever…Yet you insisted on doing so. Why? Toushirou could handle himself just fine out there this early afternoon."_

"_If I hadn't gone out there…" Koori began as he sighed as well. "Toushirou would've died."_

"_Was the situation __**that **__fatal? Ask yourself that, Koori," Fuyu no Hana challenged, brushing away a wisp of hair covering her forehead. "If I weren't you, I could've easily inferred that you __**accepted **__the fact that you're the key to Hougyoku's awakening, but I am definitely a part of you. Thus, all I can tell is that you're trying to run away from that fate…am I correct?" When Koori didn't answer, Fuyu no Hana took his opportunity to continue, "Or are you perhaps…seeking your memories of your previous life?"_

_Koori sighed sadly. "Only you understand me best, Fuyu no Hana."_

"_Do you really believe that you'll be able to recover all your memories? Heavenly guardians such as yourself cannot recover their memories of their heavenly guardian lives at all; you know that, and when Toushirou dies, the same goes for him."_

"_How about you?" Koori retorted. "Don't you want to get your memories back as well? All we remember are tiny little fragments. I'm not satisfied with that. I want all of my memories back, Fuyu no Hana, even if it means I'll have to die."_

_Fuyu no Hana gave Koori a sudden hug once he finished saying his piece. She whispered in his ear, "Koori-sama…You're going to die. You know that, don't you?" Koori heard the fear in Fuyu no Hana's voice as she spoke. She was trembling as she hugged him and tears were streaming down her face. The tears miraculously didn't freeze into ice in the frozen inner world. Koori sighed as he closed his eyes, Fuyu no Hana's voice ringing in his head._

"**You're going to die…"**

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya Toushirou sighed in frustration as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. He was obviously very annoyed by the fact that all of the people around him were having nightmares. He covered his ears with both of his hands, trying to block out the noise from everyone else in the room. Koori was practically whimpering in his sleep, Merenaito was mumbling incoherent words in her sleep, Kage was panting and Meian was crying aloud. It was more like a depressing sleepover rather than a simple request fulfilled. Somehow he knew that letting the girls in would be a bad idea. The worst part had yet to come; oh, poor lil' Toushirou.

"_OKAASAN! OTOUSAN!_" Meian screamed as she sat upright. A pair of golden eyes and another pair of diamond eyes widened at the familiar scream and both older sisters sat up, staring at the petrified Meian next to them. Placing her head in her hands as she wept, Meian trembled in fear while Merenaito and Kage took turns in comforting and hugging her.

Being the cold shinigami he was, Hitsugaya rolled his eyes and sighed another frustrated sigh yet again. "I swear I'm gonna puke from all these nightmare fits from you girls…" he mumbled.

Meian caught that and her sadness miraculously subsided. Pouting, she shouted, "Oi! Didn't _**you **_have nightmares too when we were in the material world?!"

Hitsugaya rolled his eyes yet again. "Yes I did, and I handled them better than you girls are handling yours, thank you very much," he replied in a dry and sarcastic tone.

Merenaito lied back down to sleep. "Oh, damn you, Toushirou," she spoke in a soft voice, wishing for Hitsugaya to hear that curse. "Ok, you two, go back to sleep now," she ordered her sisters as they obediently lied back down as well.

"By the way, Toushirou…" Kage spoke. "If you get nightmares too, it'll be our turn to criticize you and don't blame us when that happens."

Hitsugaya just rolled his eyes _**again **_and went back to sleep, not noticing the child-like Koori sleeping next to him, mumbling, "I'm gonna die…I'm gonna die…_**I'm gonna die…**_"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Yume…"

"Hm?"

"Why are you doing this?" the soft-spoken woman questioned the enthusiastic one. "Aren't you being too cruel?"

To her surprise, Yume chuckled in reply. "No, not at all, Haruna darling. They deserve it."

"They didn't do anything wrong," Haruna spoke in a low and dangerous tone all of a sudden. "They don't deserve it, and you have no right to do this to them."

"_**I **_have no right?" Yume was all ready to pick a fight with Haruna. "Why, Haruna darling, _**I am their mother**_. Why should I have no right?"

"You told me a long time ago that you wouldn't ever acknowledge them as your daughters and they wouldn't acknowledge you as their mother," Haruna spat. "Moreover, if you recognize yourself as their mother, you wouldn't do this to them!"

"You are such a fool, Haruna." Smoke filled Haruna's nostrils as Yume puffed out some smoke from the cigarette she was smoking. "Well, I guess different mothers have different opinions on how to raise their children. Of course, may I remind you, your opinion on raising your own child just resulted in his death, didn't it, Haruna?"

"…"

"Ah, of course I'm not expecting a reply. After all, you're reproaching yourself for what happened. This is what they call retribution," Yume sneered as she took another puff. "I best be off now. I wouldn't want my husband to wait for me. Why don't you toodle off lest _**your **_husband gets too worried?"

"……"

"Oh yes!" Yume giggled as she clapped her hands in false amusement. "How could I forget! Silly me," she spoke sarcastically, wiping away a crocodile tear. "He's been missing for what seems like an eternity, hasn't he? Poor you, Haruna, truly. Well, I best be off now," Yume finished with a creepy giggle as she walked away into the shadows, disappearing into them.

Haruna leaned against one of the wooden poles supporting the 10th Division building, a tear sliding down her cheek. "Toushirou…"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

OCs introduced – Ankoku Yume and Hyousetsu Haruna.

Ankoku means dark or darkness, yume means dream. Hyousetsu means ice and snow, haru means spring and the 'na' somewhat means name. Just think of Haruna as some sort of name for spring.

A/N: Yes, yes, yes, a lot of mystery, thank you, thank you. XD

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Hitsugaya-taichou, your little guest promised that he wouldn't be around today, but I can still feel his reiatsu."_

"_I apologise, soutaichou."_

"_You do know that lying to a soutaichou will only result in severe punishments, do you not?"_

"_I do, soutaichou."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Geezus, not again…"_

"_Stop complaining, Renji."_

"_I can't help it! We just came back from the material world and now we're going back there again?!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_It's been such a long time…! It's been such a long time, Toushirou……"_

"_O…Ok__aasan…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Kisama…!"_

"_Why, why, yes, yes, hm, it's been a while, my little dearies."_

"_Why are you here, you bitch?! And where's that coward of a bastard while we're at it?!"_

"_Don't you DARE speak to me in that manner, young lady!"_

"_You…!!!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_It__ is undignified for captains to fight with their parents in such a manner!"_

"_But soutaichou, we-!"_

"_Enough! I will have no excuses! Kurayami-taichous, I apologize but you will have to take Kuchiki Rukia and Abarai Renji's places in Hitsugaya-taichou's group."_

"_Demo soutaichou-!"_

"_It will do you some good if you stay in the material world while I let your parents take care of your divisions."_

"_But-!"_

"_It it my __**final **__decision! And no matter what you say won't change my mind!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I hate that bitch…I hate her…I hate her! I HATE HER!"_

"_Calm down, Meian…"_

"_No, I will not, Tou-Tou! I hate her! Let me vent my hatred!!!"_

"_What did she __**do **__to you that makes you hate her this much, Meian?! This is so unlike you!"_

"_You wanna know why?! You want the answer so badly I'll tell you!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Ahaha…I planned to write in the reason for the preview but for mystery's sake, I can't. So sorry for that. And the dramatic things begin the next chapter. The real deal – the melodramatic parts – will begin in a few chapters' time, so if you're the kind who loves melodramatic scenes, watch out for the next few chapters.

On a side note, the Kurayami sisters have pet names just like our little Shirou-chan does.

Hitsugaya: Shirou-chan?! Oh, I hate you, you know that?

Me: Yeah, yeah, yeah, and I love ya too.

Anyways, I'll just reveal them here lest you get confused:

Merenaito's pet names are Meru and Kana. Kage's pet name is Mezu. Meian's pet name is Syaomei.

Please review!


	17. 十七　じゅうなな

Author's Note: I want that Bleach Wii game.

Sorry, that was random. XD

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

Side note: Reiatsu is spiritual pressure whose level determines how powerful the spiritual being is. Reryuku is spiritual energy or spiritual power needed to perform things like kidou.

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Chapter 17 – Affection and Hatred; Hitsugaya and Kurayami

The breaking dawn's rather dim sunlight penetrated the window of the 10th Division captain's room, outlining the young facial features of the sleeping white-haired prodigal captain and the pale faces belonging to the messed up girls next to him. Koori was to his left, apparently, and thus, Hitsugaya Toushirou was declared to be sandwiched in between three crazy emo girls and his previous incarnation. That certainly was a feat; no one could stay sane enough to last for an hour, let alone an entire night with four particularly insane shinigami, but Hitsugaya managed to live for a night. Barely.

Sensing the warmth from the sun, Hitsugaya stirred awake. He wasn't the morning type of a shinigami, and neither was he on good terms with heat. All in all, even if he were to be drugged, he would be instantly shaken up by heat, even if it was just a minute source of heat. Resisting the urge to rub his eyes like a child, Hitsugaya looked around. He blinked. Strange…The girls were no longer there. He looked to his left. Alas, Koori was still sleeping like the child he truly appeared to be so. Hitsugaya found it cute, even.

Stretching his muscles, Hitsugaya stood up slowly, trying not to wake the miniature heavenly guardian as he made his way to his wardrobe to pick out a fresh set of the shihakushou and went into the bathroom to get changed before heading out for the announced captain's meeting. He managed to get changed pretty fast; perhaps it was because he was small. When he exited the bathroom, Koori was still sleeping. Sighing a little, Hitsugaya dreaded what Yamamoto would say to him during the captain's meeting if the old man noticed Koori's reiatsu. Tightening Hyourinmaru to the sword band slung across his shoulder, he figured that it would do him no good to think about that now. Opening the door quietly, Hitsugaya left the room for Koori's occupation.

Little did he know that the child-like guardian had been awake all this while – and wiping away tears of blood.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The captain's meeting hadn't even started when the young white-haired captain of the 10th Division reached the meeting halls. It was quite vacant, even. The only occupants were the usually punctual Soi Fong and Unohana. Hitsugaya understood that Byakuya was still recuperating from his injuries from their duel the previous day, so the noble was definitely unfit to attend the captain's meeting. The other captains still hadn't reached the meeting hall, and Hitsugaya felt a little out of place since he _**was **_an ex-convict. Not like he wanted to be one, anyway. It wasn't his choice, after all. Unohana's kind motherly voice shook him out of his trance-like state. "Hitsugaya-taichou, are you well?"

Hitsugaya blinked. "Ah..." he replied, even though he felt a little uneasy. Somehow, just somehow, his mind was telling him that it didn't feel right to attend the meeting.

Unohana smiled warmly. "Do not worry about Kuchiki-taichou. He might be bedridden for the next few weeks, but after that, he should be able to fight once more," she explained, the smile not leaving her face.

Hitsugaya's eyes widened and winced a little. "Bedridden?" he couldn't help but ask. "Is it...that serious?"

"Oh? Hmm...I have to admit, the injuries Kuchiki-taichou received were far more severe than the usual injuries..." Unohana trailed off as she remembered giving Byakuya immediate medical treatment as soon as he got to the 4th Division with her support. Touching her chin as if in thought, Unohana continued, "They were unusual...in a sense that I am unable to determine the right treatment for him. I also traced some unusual reiatsu on his injuries..."

Feeling a curling in his stomach at Byakuya's horrible condition, Hitsugaya found no need for Unohana to continue anymore. "_Hai. Arigatou gozaimasu_ for informing me." He then walked to his previous usual spot and stayed there, stoning and pondering about the situation Byakuya was in. He figured that Koori had something to do with it; probably because a heavenly guardian's reiatsu was at a far more superior level compared to better-than-average captains such as Byakuya himself, but surely there couldn't be such powerful reryuku coming from such a young guardian like Koori. However, Hitsugaya also had to consider the fact that Koori had to stay permanently materialised, and even if he wanted to, he couldn't return into Hitsugaya's inner world where he should belong in the first place. Perhaps Koori had worn out his reryuku when duelling with the stuck-up noble? Or perhaps Koori was just pulling his leg?

As soon as the other captains, including Yamamoto, had reached the meeting hall, Hitsugaya concentrated his mind on the meeting instead. Yamamoto banged his staff to commence the captain's meeting. "I have called all of you here today to discuss about Hitsugaya-taichou and Kuchiki-taichou who is unfit to attend today's captain's meeting. Unohana-taichou, if you please, inform everyone about Kuchiki-taichou's condition."

"_Hai_," Unohana replied as she bowed. Stepping forward, Unohana began, "As I was treating to Kuchiki-taichou's wounds yesterday, I have noticed weird traces of reiatsu. I deduced that Kuchiki-taichou has to be bedridden for the next few weeks or so due to the immense power of the reiatsu which is somehow disabling me from treating to Kuchiki-taichou's wounds further." Her report caused a little uproar from the loud captains Zaraki and Mayuri. Ignoring them, Unohana bowed and stepped back to her usual position.

"Now, Hitsugaya-taichou," Yamamoto continued, turning his head to face Hitsugaya. "Your little guest," Hitsugaya flinched as Yamamoto resumed his sentence, "promised that he wouldn't be around today, but I can still feel his reiatsu."

"_That's nice," Hitsugaya thought sarcastically to himself and Hyourinmaru. The dragon could only chuckle at his wielder's dry response._

"I apologise, soutaichou." When Hitsugaya had said that, it was obvious in his mind that he didn't fully mean it. How could he be blamed for Koori's permanent materialisation anyway?

"You do know that lying to a soutaichou will only result in severe punishments, do you not?" Yamamoto asked, as if questioning Hitsugaya's lawful skills.

"I do, soutaichou," Hitsugaya replied confidently, even though he had the strange feeling that he was going to be severely punished. Again.

"Therefore, as punishment for lying, you will be re-sent to the material world for a period of two weeks to repent and you will bring your friend with you," Yamamoto ordered, his voice firm and certain about his decision. "I will ask two trustworthy shinigami to accompany you. Your duties as a captain will be taken over by your fukutaichou, and you have no say in this matter, is that clear, Hitsugaya-taichou?"

Hitsugaya sighed, trying to hide the frustration and fury in his voice. "_Hai…_"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

When the dreadful captain's meeting finally ended with Yamamoto's banging of the staff, Hitsugaya had the urge to sneak up on the old man and just slash his back but that would result in an even longer repentance period and Hitsugaya definitely didn't want that, as much as he disliked returning to the material world when he had just recently resumed his duties as captain of the 10th Division. It didn't seem fair to him; it wasn't his fault for lying in the first place, even though he didn't want to push the blame to Koori, but it still didn't seem fair at all. In fact, Hitsugaya had the strong feeling that the old fart was still suspicious of his trustworthiness and loyalty to Soul Society.

That daft old bastard.

Shunpo-ing back to his division calmly, Hitsugaya opened the door to his office and greeted Matsumoto casually before retreating to his room to have a chat with Koori. Surprised to see the little white-haired child asleep in Merenaito's lap, Hitsugaya closed the door quietly after Kage sent over a little hush as she pointed at Meian sleeping soundly on the floor. He sat down next to Kage. "Kage," he spoke in a hushed whisper. "What're you doing here?"

"We came here to play with your little friend," she answered just as quietly. "You didn't tell us this little cutie is actually part of you so we wanted to know more about him."

Hitsugaya arched an eyebrow. "How did you know about Koori? And by the way, where _**were **_you three when I woke up this morning?" Hitsugaya demanded, not realising that he was raising his voice.

It was Merenaito's turn to hush him as she cradled Koori in her lap to allow him to sleep comfortably. "When we woke up early this morning, we decided to return to our divisions to get ready for the captain's meeting. That was when Koori-kun woke up for a while. We had a few exchanges before we left, that's all."

"I see…" Hitsugaya whispered as he stared at Koori. The white-haired guardian was whimpering a little in his sleep as he clung tightly onto Merenaito's shihakushou. Beads of sweat were rolling down his face. Hitsugaya blinked. That was the first time he actually witnessed Koori having a nightmare. He crawled over to Merenaito. "Merenaito, may I carry him?"

She stared at him blankly. Either Hitsugaya Toushirou was being a paedophile or he was just being concerned for an icy cold captain. Kage blinked twice in rapid motion.

Noticing the blank looks on his childhood friends' faces, Hitsugaya sighed. "I'm not being a paedophile, Merenaito, and no, Kage, I'm not being a creepy _oniichan_," Hitsugaya retorted as-a-matter-of-factly. "Just let me carry him…" Hitsugaya requested a little, feeling rather embarrassed. He was acting like as if he truly _**was **_a paedophile. Either that or he was acting like as if he was being another person.

_**That **_was creepy.

Merenaito carried Koori over to Hitsugaya's arms as Hitsugaya clung onto Koori's tiny body. Ruffling the messy snow white hair on Koori's child-like head, Hitsugaya's brows furrowed as he pondered about the situation once more. First, it was Koori materialising permanently. Next, it was _**the **_Kuchiki Byakuya getting bedridden. And now, Koori having a nightmare? Were they all linked to each other in one way or another? If so, exactly how were they linked to each other? Did he have any role in this case?

"Toushi, are you thinking about Yamamoto's orders earlier on?" Merenaito asked softly as she stroked Koori's smooth and silky hair. For a boy, it was exceptionally smooth and silky, that's for sure.

Hitsugaya sighed. "I can't believe this is happening all at once…It's a little hard for me to take it all in all of a sudden."

Kage nodded. "It's understandable. After all, it has been about five to six months since the first incident occurred. It would be hard to digest all that has happened to you during these past few months. It _**has **_been tough on you," Kage admitted, placing a comforting hand on Hitsugaya's shoulder.

He appreciated her comfort by replying with a mumbled '_arigatou_' and another stroke of Koori's hair. "But now, I'm not just worried about myself. I'm worried about Koori," Hitsugaya admitted frankly as he looked down at the sleeping figure of Koori, giving the child's hair another gentle stroke. "He's stuck like this…and he's on bad terms with Yamamoto-soutaichou. If he has to be stuck like this for good, he'll never get used to Yamamoto ordering him around all the time. Who knows what will happen?" Hitsugaya ended with another stroke.

It was true; how was he going to survive? He certainly didn't want to be ordered around by an old geezer. It would be like a strict grandfather lecturing an innocent grandchild. It was unbelievably embarrassing and uneasy. Shinigami duties were never his forte, as much as cleansing hollows was all too easy to him, but he'll never get used to them. Heck, he hated being a shinigami.

Hitsugaya Koorimasu opened one sapphire eye as he closed it again, giving the impression that he was still asleep.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Geezus, not again..." mumbled Renji, scratching his bright red eye-catching hair.

"Stop complaining, Renji," Rukia spoke monotonously, folding some clothes for her gigai and stuffing them into what humans call 'luggage'.

"I can't help it!" Renji shouted, jumping up and down. "We just came back from the material world and now we're going back there again?!"

Tossing a Chappy-like bedroom slipper at the red pineapple, Rukia took a deep breath to calm herself down before resuming her packing. "You got a problem with going to the material world, Renji?"

"I don't see why you don't have a problem going to the school..." Renji mumbled.

"Shut up, Renji," Rukia spoke icily.

"And besides..." Renji continued, ignoring Rukia's comment. "I think you _**like **_going there coz of Ichigo..."

Rukia tossed her sketchbook full of rabbit and bear drawings at Renji, attempting to shut him up and convering his eyes from noticing the crimson blush on her face. It was killing two birds with one stone. "I said _**shut up**_, Renji..."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"I think...it's time for him to see me again..." Hyousetsu Haruna whispered as she looked at the 10th Division buildings. "My Toushirou..."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Glancing at the skiving fukutaichou of his division, Hitsugaya Toushirou sighed expectantly as he saw Merenaito, Kage and a sleep-deprived Meian out. He opened the door for them and bid his farewells with a bored look on his face, even though inside he was quite happy to see them again. Merenaito left with a melachonic expression while Kage was carrying the sleepy Meian on her back with a rather pained expression instead, as much as she tried not to show it, it was obvious to Hitsugaya that she was struggling with Meian's weight, despite the fact that Meian was probably about only a pound or two heavier than the hyper Yachiru of the 11th Division.

Just as Hitsugaya was about to close the door and yell at Matsumoto to do the paperwork again, someone's soothing voice stopped him.

"Toushirou..."

Hitsugaya stopped dead in his tracks. Mid-way from closing the door entirely, he blinked slowly. The grip on the door's edge remained there while his free hand was left dangling there. Tilting his head a little, he tried thinking. Strange...This voice seemed oddly familiar, but he couldn't remember who had a voice as sweet as maple syrup and as soothing as the cool morning breeze. It was light, yet heavy, like as if whoever the voice belonged to was carrying many burdens in her heart. It reminded him of someone he knew when he was younger. No, scratch that. It reminded him of someone he knew when he was younger and _**alive.**_ He just couldn't pinpoint exactly who it was. It was so familiar he couldn't think about who. Only when the voice spoke again did he finally remember who it was.

"Toushirou..."

His sparkling emerald eyes widened. No...it couldn't be...could it? Taking a step in the process of turning to face the person, Hitsugaya opened the door just a little. With every step, he opened the door by a bit. It wasn't possible. That was the sentence that flashed through his mind at that moment. Opening the door totally, Hitsugaya held back a gasp. It _**was**_...! It really was...!

The glistening silvery hair...The lively azure eyes...The thin and slim figure...The trademark sakura blossom in her hair...

It _**was **_her. It _**was**_.

Hitsugaya couldn't believe his eyes.

Right there, right in front of him, was his very own _**mother.**_

The mother he hadn't seen since he died and went to live in Rukongan. The mother whose charming voice distinctively etched itself to his memory. The mother who had been the one taking care of him ever since he was a baby, if memory didn't fail him. The mother who taught him all about the ways of the shinigami.

The mother who was known as...Hyousetsu Haruna, the 6th seat of the 8th Division.

"It's been such a long time...!" Haruna whimpered, wiping away the tears of joy. "It's been such a long time, Toushirou..."

Hitsugaya's eyes were glistening more than ever. Oh, how he missed the way she called him by his name...It was very comforting, and it felt like as if he were on air. That was the impression of how soothing his mother's voice could be, and it became exceptionally useful if he was pissed or frustrated. He would be able to analyze things more properly and become much more organized. That was what Hitsugaya thought, at least. "_O...Okaasan..._" he whispered, still not believing what he was seeing right in front of him.

Haruna's constant nodding of her head proved him wrong. Wiping away the last bit of her tears, she ran up to the 10th Division office building and embraced her long-lost son with a heartwarming hug.

For the first time since yesterday, Hitsugaya Toushirou smiled.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"I heard some gossip about soutaichou's orders," Haruna stated, gripping onto the ice cold fists of her son. "Is it true? About you being sent to the material world for repentance?"

Hitsugaya sighed dryly. "It's true..." _"If I've said it before, I'll say it again. News sure travel fast in Soul Society," Hitsugaya thought to Hyourinmaru._

_ Yes, it would seem so._

"Ohh...It's so indecisive of that old man..." Haruna groaned sadly. "You've already been put through so much stress; and now this? It's outrageous! Oh, Toushirou, you're still a child and yet...!"

"_Okaasan_," Hitsugaya moaned as he heard Hyourinmaru's chuckles at the back of his mind. "I'm not a kid anymore..."

Haruna smiled sweetly as she hugged Hitsugaya once more. "But you'll always be one to me."

"_Okaasan...!_" Hitsugaya began his protest, feeling a vein popping from his forehead.

"Kyaah! Taichou, you're so cute! You never told me your _okaasan _is a shinigami! Aww, you're so cute to keep it from me, taichou!" the buxom fukutaichou's ultra-hyper squeaky voice squealed. It was obvious that she had snuck some sake while Hitsugaya was busy attending to his childhood friends in his room. Hitsugaya resisted the urge to slap himself in the head as Matsumoto began her babbling to his mother. Oh boy. It sure was going to have a very _**laaasting **_impression...

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Kurayami Meian Kaminari was _**not **_expecting this.

She had been completely alarmed and alerted awake once she laid her eyes on that one shinigami standing in their way; she and her sisters', that is. Merenaito was glaring at her coldly, the tension surrounding her and the shinigami getting heavier and more choking due to the rising reiatsu exuded from Merenaito herself. Kage was restraining herself from cursing, but she didn't know how long until she would go insane from not cursing at the shinigami. Meian, however, was the most devastated one. She was trying hard not to hurl colorful vulgarities at the shinigami before them, and trying equally hard not to stomp her flat and pound her into a piece of shit with her zanpakutou. Clenching her fists in pure anger, Meian bit the bottom of her lip till it bled. Tears were dripping faster than she could control. The shinigami smiled a twisted grin.

Ankoku Yume was most definitely amused by her daughters' reactions.

Kage couldn't take it anymore. "Kisama...!" she hissed the curse, her grip on Meian's shihakushou tightening with uncontrolled reryuku going up in tiny flames on Meian's shihakushou.

Yume was still grinning from ear to ear. She deliberately took this chance to swish out her trusty nail filer and started filing her nails like some kind of beauty queen. "Why, why, yes, yes, hm, it's been a while, my little dearies."

_ "Oh, don't make me puke, woman!"_ Meian thought angrily as she jumped off Kage's back, disappearing for a while before appearing right in front of Yume, zanpakutou unsheathed. She held the blade right at Yume's neck, having the mental thought to draw blood from the veins located at her neck. "Why are you here, you bitch?!" Meian demanded, hot tears spilling out from her eyes. "And where's that coward of a bastard while we're at it?!"

Much to the sisters' horror, Yume actually gave Meian a tight slap on the cheek. Meian fell to her side, accidentally dropping her zanpakutou, and held onto her red and sore cheek. "Don't you DARE speak to me in that manner, young lady!" Yume reprimanded with pride clearly in her tone of voice; she was greatly amused by having authority over her young daughters-cum-captains.

Meian panted heavily as she cried. "You...!!!"

Merenaito and Kage wouldn't stand by and watch their youngest sister get hit anymore. Glancing sideways at each other, they nodded in agreement as they called upon a high level of reiatsu with Kage fading away. Merenaito unsheathed her zanpakutou and stood in front of Meian, sticking her zanpakutou's blade right into the soil, using the blade as some form of protection from their ex-mother's slaps. "Why you little...!" Yume hissed as she raised her reiatsu as well. Merenaito pulled Meian close as they hid behind the blade, anticipating the high-level kidou their ex-mother would be using to break the blade's defences. Yume called out the incantation for Soukatsui (A/N: I just can't get the spelling right...) and the blue flames burst out from her hand. Just at this moment, another Soukatsui came hurling towards Yume's, stopping it in its tracks. "What the...?!" Yume exclaimed, surprised that her hadou spell was being neglected back. Whoever shot that Soukatsui against hers must be a kidou master, for she had never seen a Soukatsui energy ball grow to such large proportions; it was nearly twice as large as an ordinary one!

Kage appeared from the shadows, clad in her full Kidou Corps attire. She pulled down the cloth covering her jaw to reveal her identity to her ex-mother. Yume watched with wide open eyes. The Soukatsui sent hurling by her daughter was getting closer and closer. Yume tried to shunpo away but the ball of energy just kept following her at high speed. How could her daughter be this good at kidou? It wasn't possible; it wasn't. The more impossible facts were that her three daughters had all become captains of the Gotei 13.

It was just plain impossible since they were young retards!

The Kurayami sisters' eyes widened at their ex-mother's thought. Sometimes they wished they weren't born with clairvoyance, otherwise they might be able to avoid and ignore such nasty comments, especially one from their own mother who refused to acknowledge them! Merenaito's eyes glowed with fury as she tugged her zanpakutou out of the soil, her hand trailing along the blade's length. Kage concentrated her reryuku into one big Soukatsui ball, the grounds on which she was standing beginning to form depressions due to the immense difference in the air pressure. Meian grabbed her zanpakutou and held it close to her heart literally as she closed her eyes and allowed tears to fall onto her blade. Just as Merenaito and Meian were about to call upon their zanpakutous' shikai - and Kage with her large ball of utter fury - someone stepped in between mother and daughters.

The match had ended.

Merenaito furrowed her ebony black brows at the old captain of the 1st Division who became the bridge between mother and daughters. She immediately sheathed her zanpakutou and sighed quite audibly. She was not one who would defy the soutaichou unless the situation demanded it. Noticing her older sister's actions, Kage grudgingly returned the reryuku used to form her Soukatsui ball to her own body and stepped back one step. Meian, on the other hand, was sending death glares towards Yamamoto, unwilling to sheathe her sword.

Yamamoto turned to face the Kurayami _kyoudai _(kyoudai - siblings). His reiatsu rose a little as if he was trying to intimidate the young female captains. "It is undignified for captains to fight with their parents in such a manner!"

"_Parents my foot. It's just that bitch down here," _Meian thought to herself. She stepped up and began to protest, "But soutaichou, we-!"

Not allowing her to speak any further, Yamamoto continued, "Enough! I will have no excuses!" He banged his staff angrily, sending shock waves of high reiatsu which spread across the small area. "Kurayami-taichous, I apologize but you will have to take Kuchiki Rukia and Abarai Renji's places in Hitsugaya-taichou's group."

Kage went up next. "_Demo _soutaichou-!"

Yamamoto stopped her as well. "It will do you some good if you stay in the material world while I let your parents take care of your divisions."

Merenaito felt like punching him to a pulp for saying that, but she had to restrain herself from doing so, otherwise she'd get herself executed. She could only protest along with her sisters. "But-!"

The high level of reiatsu the old captain directed at them wasn't enough to shut their mouths, but it was enough for them to know that Yamamoto was determined to punish them as well. "It is my _**final **_decision! And no matter what you say won't change my mind!"

Giving the old bastard a cold glare, a darkened glare and a death glare respectively, Merenaito, Kage and Meian gritted their teeth and clenched their fists. Not bothering to reply Yamamoto, they spun around and stomped away. Before they left the area, they stopped for a moment and turned back around to glare at the two once more.

The triumphant grin on Yume's face urged them to leave at once.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Meian…" Kage whispered, tapping Meian's shoulder. "Come on, Meian, don't be like this…"

Meian gave Kage a tight hug as she wept, burying her face in Kage's shoulder. Her tears moisturized the shoulder area of Kage's shihakushou till Kage could feel her skin getting wet with tears. Hugging Meian back, Kage was sighing sadly with Merenaito occasionally looking back at the two younger sisters of hers walking slowly behind her. Merenaito looked away and continued walking until they came by the 10th Division buildings. Stealing a glance at the door, Merenaito had the urge to knock and turn to Hitsugaya for comfort but reckoned that he would be busy leaving for the material world later in the afternoon. As Merenaito turned to leave, Kage stopped her. "Wait, Meru. We should tell Toushirou about this."

"Why?" Merenaito asked, her voice softer than it usually was.

"We're leaving together with him, after all," Kage replied with a tinge of bitterness in her voice. "It's…Yamamoto-soutaichou's orders."

"Fine. We'll go in there, but we won't tell him about what happened just now."

Kage gave a nod in agreement and continued comforting the weeping Meian as Merenaito stepped back up and knocked on the door. It took a while, but Hitsugaya opened the door, surprised to see them standing there and stoning. "Ah, so you're here already?" Hitsugaya asked.

Merenaito blinked in confusion. "What?"

"Yamamoto-soutaichou sent a hell butterfly to inform me about…" Hitsugaya paused. "About…what happened."

There was an awkward silence between the two parties before Merenaito broke it. "…I see." She looked at Hitsugaya in the eye. "May we…come in?"

Hitsugaya felt obliged to let them in and try as much as he could to comfort them, even though it would be quite uneasy with his mother around. "Ah," he replied as he stepped back inside, allowing his childhood friends to enter his office. He slid the door back, closing it, and took a seat on the sofa next to Haruna where he was seated before the Kurayami _kyoudai _came. Merenaito melancholically sat down as Kage and Meian followed her actions. Hitsugaya's eyes widened at the sight of Meian crying. Haruna looked at the three girls uneasily as she stood up and excused herself from the room, not oblivious to the fact that she shouldn't be present right now. "Meian, what…?"

"I hate that bitch…" Meian muttered with anger in her voice. "I hate her…I hate her! I HATE HER!" Meian shouted, her voice echoing throughout the office. A burst of her reiatsu caused an averagely expensive vase in Hitsugaya's office to shatter into pieces. Matsumoto proceeded to excuse herself by rushing out of the office for the bar at once.

"Calm down, Meian…" Hitsugaya spoke.

Meian, being Meian, didn't want to hear another word of comfort. "No, I will not, Tou-Tou!" Hitsugaya didn't flinch at the pet name for the situation seemed to be too serious for their childish name-calling. "I hate her! Let me vent my hatred!!!"

Hitsugaya stole a glance at the depressed Merenaito and Kage who didn't do anything to calm their hysterical sister down. Perhaps they felt the same way as Meian did. Inquisitive, he asked, "What did she _**do **_to you that made you hate her this much, Meian?! This is so unlike you!"

It was true. The Meian he knew when he was studying at the Academy was a much happier girl who didn't seem to have a care in the world. He remembered that she was so lax that she was often late for lessons and practise sessions. She was so happy that she always had a smile plastered on her face. She was so carefree that she often got herself into serious trouble with the teachers. She was so out of control that she often beat her classmates up when they offended her, but that was all. Hitsugaya had never seen Meian this angry, this upset before. Surely there had to be a very strong reason why she overreacted upon seeing her mother.

Reading his mind, Meian exclaimed as she jumped from her seat, "You wanna know why?! You want the answer so badly I'll tell you! That bitch was the very cause of our deaths when we were humans!" Seeing that Merenaito and Kage didn't do anything to stop her from telling the truth, Meian continued her furious rants despite the fact that Hitsugaya had the that's-enough look on his face. "_**She's **_the one who kicked Merenaito off a cliff to her death! _**She's **_the one who abandoned Kage and let her get killed by a hollow! _**She's **_the one who beat me up till I bled to death! _**She's **_the one who drinks alcohol and smokes twenty-four seven and abuse my father all the time! _**She's the one who nearly killed us again on the day of your graduation!!!"**_

Hitsugaya held back choked gasps of surprise and horror at her story. Even though it consisted of only a few sentences, it already explained everything Hitsugaya needed to know. He didn't want to know more if it would bring heartbreaking moments for the girls, even if they were willing to tell him more. It was enough; it was definitely enough. So their mother was the reason why they disappeared for no apparent reason on his graduation; that alone was enough for Hitsugaya to already hate the woman.

Yes…it was definitely enough.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

After seeing the girls off, Hitsugaya sighed as he sat back down on the sofa, rubbing the temples of his forehead. Thinking back, it was no wonder Meian hated her mother to the very core. Even though Merenaito and Kage seemed indifferent on the outside, he was certain that they were feeling just as pained and depressed on the inside. Folding his arms across his chest, Hitsugaya sighed in frustration again. He couldn't stop thinking about it; the horrors of his past were actually all because of a grudge. Thinking back now, it wasn't his fault at all that the Kurayami _kyoudai _disappeared on his graduation day. Memories of that day and onwards flashed in his mind.

Then he realised it.

Something…was amiss.

If their mother nearly killed them on the day of his graduation, then whose corpses did he see after being appointed as fukutaichou of the 10th Division at that point of time?

If those were the girls' corpses, how could they still be alive?

If those weren't their corpses, then where did they go after they disappeared?

No…If their mother _**nearly **_killed them, it meant that they had been alive all this while. So…what really happened?

His heavenly guardian senses, as what Koori called them, were telling him that something bad was going to happen. And it wasn't just the girls either; he couldn't help but have this uneasy feeling that something terrible was going to happen to all of them, including Koori. His sharp intuition was always spot-on. It could very well be spot-on about this matter as well.

Something bad was going on.

Something _**really really BAD…**_

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A/N: Next chapter has more humour to it, but it'll get very suspenseful at the end. Not much of drama in the next chapter, except for some more nightmares and a bit more on Hitsu's and the Kurayami sisters' pasts. It'll get really _**really **_interesting in the next chapter and onwards.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_K-K-K-K-K-KOORI?!?!?! IS THAT YOU?!?!"_

"_No, it's an old lady who wants to woo you. Of course it's me, you IDIOT."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_It's truth and despair; which do you prefer?"_

"_The truth."_

"_You got it, Toushirou, that's my zanpakutou's ability."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I believe the key to the Hougyoku and my success is situated in the material world."_

"_Aizen-sama, do you want me to go there and take him for you?"_

"_No, Ulquiorra. I wish to receive the guest-of-honour personally. It is time to destroy Soul Society."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Ah, Toushirou-kun, thank you for bringing me the best gift in the universe. Now I shall take it and claim it as my prize."_

"_Toushirou!!!"_

"_Get your hands off Koori, you bastard!"_

"_Yare, yare…(Jap for 'my, my…' I think) What's with kids and their choice of language nowadays?"_

"_I __**said**__, get your hands __**off **__Koori!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**


	18. 十八　じゅうはち

Author's Note: _Arigatou _for all the reviews! I've been feeling down lately; don't ask. Just enjoy chapter 18!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters. Merenaito's nightmare scene is written by my friend whose codename is Merenaito so I own none of it. The rest is all written by me. Remember, it's only one nightmare which she wrote. The other two nightmares were written by me. Another of my friend, codenamed Meian, didn't write her own nightmare because I forgot to ask her. (grins sheepishly)

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Chapter 18 – Fate and Destiny; The Facts of Koori

"So, you're all ready to go?"

Hitsugaya looked at Meian for a while, amazed by how fast she could recover from her hatred and anger within a few hours' time. Normally, if he had experienced such a tragedy himself, he'd be cursing every single day of his life as a shinigami. Looking down at Koori, who was about half his height, Hitsugaya sighed and locked eyes with Meian. "Soutaichou _**did **_say that we are to leave right now…"

Meian rolled her eyes. "Again with your soutaichou thing. Just forget about that daft old man for once, Toushirou, and let's go already. Merenaito and Kage are waiting."

Hitsugaya watched the happy-go-lucky girl skip over to the senkaimon where Merenaito and Kage were standing and waiting patiently for the 'young' ones. He sighed and followed, Koori trailing behind him with his arms folded across his chest. Koori stopped and turned to glare at the empty space before he walked calmly over to the group. It was probably going to be the last time he would see Soul Society ever again, so he might as well take one last glance at the lonely place before going.

"Koori, what's wrong?" Hitsugaya asked as soon as he noticed the exceptionally grim look on Koori's face.

Koori looked up with a glare he didn't mean to shoot at Hitsugaya. "It's nothing, Toushirou."

"Are you sure, Koori?"

"Yes…" Koori muttered before sighing. "I'm sure."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

The senkaimon opened with the familiar ray of bright blue light shining right through the opening. Merenaito stoically stepped out of the senkaimon with her arms folded across her chest with Kage and Meian following her. Hitsugaya soon followed but Koori didn't leave the senkaimon opening. He turned around, confused that the child-like guardian didn't step out, and called out, "Oi, Koori, you know you can come on out now."

"Yes, Koori," Merenaito stated. "We have to go find Urahara the _hentai _and get the gigai." (hentai – pervert)

"We'll not be walking around gigai-less, you know," Kage spoke, raising her voice a little at the senkaimon.

When Koori didn't say anything to reply, Hitsugaya moaned a complaint and rushed inside the senkaimon, which miraculously didn't close up yet, and was utterly determined to get the stubborn guardian out of that senkaimon. Unfortunately, the bright light of the bridge connecting the two worlds was blinding and Hitsugaya couldn't see very clearly while he was in there. "Koori, don't stay in there or else you'll get stuck in there forever." Hitsugaya's attempt to scare Koori didn't work, obviously, for the guardian still did not reply. "Koori, the senkaimon is going to close any minute now."

"…et the gigai…" an unfamiliar voice echoed in the senkaimon.

Hitsugaya blinked. "Koori, what happened to your voice?"

The unusually rather high-pitched but airy voice spoke once more, "…Leave the senkaimon and get the gigai for me..." It seemed that Koori had repeated what he had said before, except that it was much clearer than the previous time he tried speaking.

"But you-"

Koori didn't wait for Hitsugaya to finish his sentence. "Just leave the senkaimon and go already!"

Even though that was a shout, which Koori seemed to develop a fetish for, Hitsugaya still could not recognize the voice that was speaking to him in the senkaimon bridge, but he agreed anyway and rushed out of the senkaimon instantly to get to Urahara's as soon as possible. Well, at least before the senkaimon closed, that is.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Ooh, it's you three pretty girls again! How intriguing!" the _hentai _shopkeeper exclaimed excitedly as he literally plunged himself towards the three Kurayami sisters, hoping that he would finally get the chance to at least give them a nice big hug.

Merenaito's eyes flashed and she gave the shopkeeper a powerful punch in the stomach before he could even touch them. "You pervert…" Merenaito hissed, folding her arms.

"Owww…That's so mean of you, Merenaito-chan," Urahara cooed, rubbing his stomach.

"We came to get our gigai, damn you," Meian hurled the insult towards Urahara. "So just shut up, stop molesting us and give us the gigai already!"

"And make it snappy, Urahara," Hitsugaya added hastily. "I need to deliver a gigai."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

It seemed very awkward for a certain white-haired but black-shirted boy running towards the park with an unmoving body of yet another white-haired kid with a navy blue cap and ice blue shirt, along with deep ocean blue jeans, in his arms. The Karakura residents were staring at the two abnormally colored-hair boys, wondering what was happening all of a sudden. It was even stranger to see three identical but different ebony black-haired girls running after them and screaming – or in Merenaito's case, muttering – names most likely belonging to the boys. The Karakura resident shook their heads at the sight with 'tsk tsk' sounds coming from their lips, wondering if the parents of those wild kids had taught them any manners at all.

As soon as Hitsugaya caught sight of the closing senkaimon, he shouted, "Koori, catch!" He then tossed the Koori gigai into the opening of the senkaimon which had been seen as an empty space for those residents present. They immediately fled the scene in case Hitsugaya was insane. Kage took care of that by replacing their memories as quickly as she could and hurried them out of the park. Hitsugaya stared at the senkaimon, waiting patiently for Koori to come out before the door closed. Koori still didn't step out. The door was only two fingers away from closing when Hitsugaya suddenly lost his patience and cold exterior. "Dammit, Koori, come on out!"

"…Um…" the same feminine voice spoke softly, but loud enough for Hitsugaya to hear. "Are you sure you want me to come out?"

"Of course," Hitsugaya replied, shooting the senkaimon with a quizzical look.

A pale hand came out from the light and held onto the edge of one of the doors to prevent the senkaimon from closing. "Are you really really sure?"

Hitsugaya was baffled by Koori's weird display of actions lately. "Just come on out, Koori. It's not like I'm gonna laugh at you."

"…Fine, if you say so…But you have to promise me not to laugh, ok?" Koori asked unsurely as a white boot came out from the senkaimon. Hitsugaya and the Kurayami _kyoudai _watched as the door opened up with Koori pushing the edges of the doors aside. As soon as the senkaimon closed with Koori fully exiting from it, Hitsugaya's expression became twisted and shocked at the sight. Merenaito was grinning but she hid it by covering her lower jaw with her mouth. Kage was stifling her giggles while Meian was laughing and pointing at Koori. Hitsugaya blinked and blinked, hoping that whoever it was before him was an illusion. However, it wasn't. Koori blushed and exclaimed, "I-I told you not to laugh at me! I knew I shouldn't have come out…" she groaned as she buried her face in her hands.

And dear readers, a gentle reminder coming from Hitsugaya's blank state of mind, that sentence did _**not **_have any typo errors. That's right; it's a _**she**_.

The surprising fact was that Koori's gigai had completely changed its appearance. She was wearing a sleeveless ice blue top and a navy blue skirt which didn't reach up till knee-length. On her left wrist was a deep ocean blue watch decorated with bright silver glitters and a shiny purple bell hanging from it. She was also wearing pure white boots instead of sneakers her original gigai wore, and instead of a cap on her head, a beautiful glimmering white lily was placed in her shoulder-length snow white hair. The only things about her that didn't change were her hair color and her piercing ice blue eyes. All in all, Koori looked like an excellent example of a princess of ice. Hitsugaya was completely shocked out of his systems.

"K-K-K-K-K-KOORI?!?!?! IS THAT YOU?!?!" Hitsugaya couldn't help but exclaim as he pointed an accusing finger at the 'new' Koori.

Koori blushed heavily but she retorted icily, "No, it's an old lady who wants to woo you." With that, she rolled her eyes and continued just as sarcastically with a sigh, "Of _**course **_it's me, you IDIOT."

"B-b-b-but how?! You were clearly a boy when we were back in Soul Society!!! How did you become a…a…" Hitsugaya gulped. "…_**girl**_?"

Meian fumed and slapped Hitsugaya on the back of his head when he obviously wasn't looking. "What, you got a problem with us girls?!"

Hitsugaya and Koori ignored her as Koori began to explain, "I don't know very much about this either. All I do know is that I was originally a human girl when I was alive and that when I was sent to Soul Society, I somehow became a boy." She paused before continuing, "Perhaps the amount of soul particles present in Soul Society modified my gender. I'm actually quite surprised I can become a girl again in the material world." Flushing again, Koori shouted, "_**Now **_do you know why I was unwilling to get out of that damn senkaimon?!"

Hitsugaya Toushirou backed away from the fuming and embarrassed Koori. One thing he learnt when growing up with girls was _**never EVER **_make them angry…

**＜ブリーチ＞**

After wandering around Karakura mindlessly and noiselessly, the group still hadn't decided on where they would stay for the next two weeks. Hitsugaya suggested Urahara's but Merenaito, Kage and Meian strongly disagreed with that idea. They could _**not **_imagine having to stand the pervert's attempts to molest them for the next two weeks. They suggested Ichigo's house, but Hitsugaya in turn strongly disagreed to that, even though Koori was practically trying to convince Hitsugaya that it would do him some good to stay at Ichigo's so those two will get to 'know each other better'. [A/N: You know what I'm hinting at. (wink wink) Hitsugaya stubbornly insisted on finding somewhere else anyway.

Koori was very picky about the place they had to stay for two weeks. She insisted on Ichigo's, but Hitsugaya wouldn't hear of it. She then suggested a hotel but Hitsugaya again retorted that Soul Society didn't provide them any money to use as the hotel fees. Moreover, on behalf of Soul Society, Yamamoto was determined to let them go penniless in the material world, so they were very poor at the moment. Sighing in frustration, Koori tried to think of more ideas. She could only think of Ichigo's, but like what Hitsugaya said, he would not stay at the strawberry's house.

"Come on, Toushirou, it's only for two weeks," Koori stated as-a-matter-of-factly. "It's not like you'll be staying there for the rest of your life."

"You know, she's right, Tou-Tou," Meian agreed with a smile. "Stop being such a party pooper and let's go to Strawberry-chan's house already!"

"But-!" Before Hitsugaya could even get the chance to finish his argument, the two rabid girls dragged him by the arms to Ichigo's while the other two more mature girls sighed and followed calmly.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…And that's what happened," Kage ended, folding her arms. She was glaring at the orange-haired vaizard for she seriously didn't like spending the next two weeks with a buffoon like him.

Ichigo blinked twice in confusion. "Uh-huh…So you wanna stay at my house till you gotta go back to Soul Society."

"Yup," Meian replied.

Ichigo leaned in to whisper, "My dad's sorta crazy over…" Ichigo paused and gulped. "…_**children**_, so you might wanna reconsider…"

"Excuse me? Who were you calling a _**child**_?!" Hitsugaya exclaimed, giving Ichigo his famous death glare.

"I didn't mean that, Toushirou! I meant that you look like kids so…" Ichigo sheepishly grinned as he rubbed the back of his head.

Hitsugaya scoffed, "It's Hitsugaya-taichou to you, Kurosaki."

"So…you'll stay?" Ichigo asked hopefully.

"It's not like we have anywhere else to go…" Hitsugaya replied, looking away. "Just keep your dad away from us. Is that clear, Kurosaki?"

"Clear as glass, Toushirou!"

A vein could be seen throbbing from Hitsugaya's head. "It's _**Hitsugaya-taichou!**_"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya reluctantly and regrettably agreed to Koori's (peculiar) request to stay with the orange strawberry in his room upstairs while the four girls accompanying him to the material world decided to stay in respective wardrobes of the house. Koori wanted to stay in Ichigo's wardrobe like what Rukia did. Meian insisted on joining Koori but Merenaito and Kage dragged her to Ichigo's sisters' rooms instead. Merenaito stayed in Karin's wardrobe while Kage unfortunately got Isshin's wardrobe and Meian, Yuzu's. Luckily for them, Isshin had gone out with his two daughters to the beach and Ichigo didn't want to go so he stayed at home, so there was no worry about having to reveal themselves to Ichigo's family.

Hitsugaya walked down the staircase leading to the living room and the kitchen. He saw the Kurayami _kyoudai _relaxing on the sofa, enjoying the television programs. Koori was busy fixing herself a light snack in the kitchen so Hitsugaya decided to join up with the girls. He _**was **_the only male shinigami around, other than Ichigo, so it was really awkward…

"I've been wanting to ask you three…" Hitsugaya began, getting the Kurayamis' attention. "All these years…you've already achieved your bankai, right? Why didn't you tell me?"

Meian blinked. "How'd you find out?"

Hitsugaya stared at her with an arched eyebrow. "It's the basic requirement for captaincy. What's more, Yamamoto-soutaichou said that you attained your bankai when you were still studying at the Academy. Why didn't you tell me something so important?"

Merenaito sipped from her cup of tea and placed the cup back on the plate on the table. "We didn't see any need to tell you at that point of time."

Kage sighed, "To us, attaining bankai isn't important anyway. We only wish to stay together as a happy bunch of sisters. We don't seek for power."

Hitsugaya stared at them wide-eyed. For girls younger than he was, probably about a decade younger even, they had already become so mature in terms of mind. To him, he sought power only to protect those held dear to him, but as for Merenaito, Kage and Meian, they disliked the thought about seeking power even though they held so much in their hands. It was remarkable, truly. It gave a very lasting impression on him. Now Hitsugaya was curious. _**Very **_curious. "What are your zanpakutous' abilities? You never told me before."

"Do you really want to know?" Merenaito asked, taking another sip. "It's not really much of a big deal."

"Even so, it's best if we understand each other more. With the war starting at any moment possible, we need to communicate better," Hitsugaya replied, hoping that it would be able to convince the girls to tell him. They never liked revealing their secrets anyway.

"Fine," Merenaito agreed, placing the cup of tea down. "Let me ask you something first. What is my favorite element?"

"Darkness," Hitsugaya answered.

"What is my favorite object in the whole of the solar system?"

"The moon."

Giving him a light-hearted smile, Merenaito replied, "Put it all together, Toushi. That's my zanpakutou's name."

Hitsugaya placed a finger to his chin. Darkness was _kurayami, kurai, ankoku _and _yami. _Moon was _tsuki and getsu. _If he had to put two and two together, Merenaito's zanpakutou's name would either mean Dark Moon or Moon of Darkness. A very nice name indeed, not to mention deadly. (A/N: I'm not going to reveal zanpakutou names, but you can figure it out yourself. I'll reveal the names later in the story) Figuring that he could wait till Merenaito revealed her zanpakutou's name later, Hitsugaya sighed and went to ask Kage, "How about you, Kage?"

Kage smiled creepily. "My turn to ask, hm? All right, then. It's truth and despair; which do you prefer?"

Hitsugaya replied, "The truth." Remembering that Aizen had the power to completely hypnotize others upon seeing his shikai, Hitsugaya would rather choose the truth for he didn't want to be lied to ever again. He felt like a puppet Aizen made use of. A puppet who failed to protect Hinamori. He didn't ever want to be deceived ever again.

"You got it, Toushirou, that's my zanpakutou's ability."

Hitsugaya blinked. That didn't make any sense…unless Kage was implying that her zanpakutou had the ability to show others the truth behind all things? Like, if Aizen was hypnotizing them all this while, her zanpakutou would reveal the truth? That was a kind of zanpakutou that even Yamamoto himself would envy and desire if he was bent on winning the winter war against Aizen and his army of Arrancar. Hitsugaya then asked Meian, "So, Meian, are you going to tell me your zanpakutou's ability or name?"

"Actually," Meian replied with a huge grin. "Both!" Giggling away, she asked, "My zanpakutou gives everyone something he or she needs, and I am the fuel for her power because I'm always smiling!"

"_Not always, Meian…" _Hitsugaya thought sadly. "Your zanpakutou's name is happiness and its ability is giving everyone happiness, right?"

"You're half right!" Meian's giggles made Hitsugaya smile, but just a little tiny bit. It was great to see the girls smiling again; he needed them to forget the tragedy they had experienced before and walk towards the path of happiness.

If only Meian could make the entire world perfect with happiness…

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_(A/N: This is the only nightmare scene which is written by my friend)_

_All was darkness. She would have usually found the darkness calming, but this darkness held the hint of unrest. It was disturbing, even. She stared up through the trees' leaves at the waning crescent moon, settled snugly in the night's dark satin cloak. The pearlescent glow of the moon illuminated the forest eerily, but somehow she wasn't afraid._

Then she ran, not with fear or frustration, but a panicked run which told of her seeking something. The thorns tore her underfoot, but she kept on. And stopped. As she stared, panting, into the pitch black expanse behind her, and before her, she realised there was nothing to look for; nothing to find. She was alone, the world against her, as it always had been. It then struck her that she was seeking happiness and love, two things that had been denied of her. She would always be denied of those which make a life _**normal**_____

All her life was full of sorrow. There was no way out of her Forest of Despair.

A scream of anguish parted her lips, part of her emotions finally releasing themselves, before being sealed by her heart once more.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_It was steaming hot with streams of lava flowing down the tunnel of fire. The cracks on the ground were visible and hot as fire as she stepped across it, one foot after another. Steam burst out from one of the cracks which she stepped on and she wit__hdrew her foot with a hiss and a wince altogether. The black devil behind her poked her back with a dark katana blade, urging her to continue walking on the path of fiery death. Evaporating tears fell from her diamond eyes as she continued walking._

_The path seemed to be never-ending._

_Fear gripped her heart as she finally came to the end of the path. The cloaked figure at the end of it was laughing maniacally in a low and menacing voice which sent chills down her spine. Gulping, she slowly walked up to him, awaiting her ordered punishment. The figure threw his dark velvet cloak over his shoulder and picked her up with a clawed hand. She couldn't breathe; the grip was too tight and it was suffocating her._

_She knew she wouldn't get out of this alive as he tossed her into the endless vortex of pure darkness below._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_The glass shard pierced through her skin, letting drips of dark crimson blood fall onto the ground, staining it. Panting heavily, she held onto her injured arm to stop the bleeding, but more glass shards collided with her pale skin. She yelled for t__hem to stop hurting her, but they didn't listen. The glass shards continued to rain on her as they drew blood. She tried wiping away the tears which were about to spill out, but it only stained her eyelids with blood. She tried to get up and run away, but her legs wouldn't move. They had been numbed from blood loss._

_Her vision was starting to fail her; her head was throbbing with dizziness; her stomach was churning with nauseating feelings. She felt something hit hard against the back her neck. It wasn't a glass shard; it was an iron spike which fell from the sky. Fluid started to travel up her throat as she spat out blood and fell limp. She had fallen to the glass traps in the cave of nowhere._

_She couldn't feel her toes anymore. She couldn't wiggle her fingers. She couldn't even muster the strength to blink. It was like as if she was a voodoo doll with the needles sticking out from her body, except that she was a voodoo doll who could feel the immense pain of the needles._

_Within the cave of all things sharp and fatal, she cried out one last time before her world faded into nothingness._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…aito!" a low but familiar voice called out to her. It wasn't very clear, but she was sure it was her name he was calling. "…naito!" Yes, it was her name. Merenaito strained to open her eyes as she suddenly locked eyes with the one and only Hitsugaya Toushirou. "Merenaito, you finally woke up, you _baka._"

Behind the sentence of coldness, there was a tinge of concern. Merenaito smiled. "Ok, I'm awake, Toushi. What do you want in the middle of the night?"

Hitsugaya stared at her like as if she had grown an extra arm. "The middle of the night? Meru, it's the middle of the _**day**_! You've been sleeping since yesterday _**afternoon**_!"

Merenaito sat up on her bedding of clothes, staring at Hitsugaya with wide eyes. "I…I have?"

"Yes! Why do you think Toushirou was so worried about you and your sisters?" Koori asked just as worriedly.

"Kage and Meian too? What's going on?" Merenaito muttered under her breath before she spoke slightly more loudly, "How are they?"

"Awake and eating lunch, although they seem a little shaky…like you," Koori replied before she headed downstairs.

Hitsugaya glanced at Merenaito worriedly. "If you have any troubles, just come to me for help, even if I can't do anything. I can't have any of you dying on me, alright?" he asked icily before he followed Koori downstairs.

Merenaito could only smile at her pillar of support.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Ulquiorra," Aizen began by calling Ulquiorra's name. "I suppose you know why I have called you here?"

Ulquiorra bowed. "No, Aizen-sama. For what reason do you have to call me?"

Aizen smiled at Ulquiorra's curious question. "I believe the key to the Hougyoku and my success is situated in the material world."

Ulquiorra looked at Aizen with his melancholic expression plastered on his face. "Aizen-sama, do you want me to go there and take him for you?"

Aizen's sadistic grin widened. "No, Ulquiorra. I wish to receive the guest of honor personally." He stepped down from his throne and stood next to Ulquiorra. "It is time to destroy Soul Society."

"Aizen-sama, you don't mean…?"

"Yes, I do. However, I don't intend to go there alone," Aizen spoke as he walked out of the room with his hands behind his back. Before Ulquiorra left the room with Aizen, he heard one last order.

"I want you and Grimmjaw to accompany me. Tell Gin and Kaname this piece of wonderful news. We shall go there immediately. There is no time to waste."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Koori felt a shiver sent up her spine as she walked alongside Hitsugaya. Ichigo received a call from his father that he, Karin and Yuzu would be returning from their short vacation in a few hours' time so Ichigo decided to bring everyone out to the park before he could figure out an excuse to tell his father to let the group stay. Merenaito and Kage were trailing behind Meian to make sure she wouldn't freak out at the sight of anything sharp while Hitsugaya was sending death glares at the orange strawberry who tried to avoid Hitsugaya's glares. Koori felt an even colder chill up her spine and subconsciously grabbed Hitsugaya's arm of which the action surprised the icy captain.

"Koori, is something the matter?" Hitsugaya asked as he stopped in his tracks.

"Toushirou…" Koori whispered, her grip tightening. "I…I don't feel so good about this place…"

"It's just a park with normal people around," Ichigo stated the obvious.

Hitsugaya sent him a glare again and continued with comforting Koori. "It'll be fine, Koori. The people don't have any traces of reiatsu whatsoever; it's not like Soul Society has sent shinigami to kill you or anything."

"But…" Just as Koori said that, she felt something even colder wrap itself around her entire body. For a wielder of ice, this was cold even for her! Soon everyone could feel the high but dark reiatsu hanging in the air. Their clothes flew around wildly as a garganta opened from a rip in the sky.

Kage gasped. "Two Espadas…and three reiatsu traces belonging to…the…"

"What the hell is Aizen doing here?" Hitsugaya spoke in low and dangerous tone of voice as he searched his pocket for the rikongan dispenser. The Kurayami _kyoudai _did the same and Ichigo looked for his shinigami badge. The captains jumped out of their gigai in full shinigami form and instructed the souls within their gigai to evacuate the Karakura residents in the park. Ichigo dragged his body to a remote spot so no one would call the ambulance.

The garganta fully opened, revealing the faces of Aizen, Ichimaru, Tousen, Ulquiorra and Grimmjaw. They jumped down from the garganta and landed on the ground with a soft thud altogether. The former captains unsheathed their zanpakutou as Ichimaru headed for Meian and Tousen, Merenaito. Ulquiorra went for Kage while Ichigo was horribly distracted by Grimmjaw's cero blasts. Aizen grinned as soon as he caught sight of the white-haired girl. "Ah, Toushirou-kun," Aizen addressed Hitsugaya using his first name, earning himself a glare from the icy captain. "Thank you for bringing me the best gift in the universe. Now I shall take it and claim it as my prize."

Without warning, Aizen shunpo-ed over to Koori and caught her by the left arm. Koori gave a yelp in fright as she struggled to get herself out of Aizen's clutches. "Toushirou!!!"

Hitsugaya glared at Aizen and stretched out his arm to grip onto Koori's right arm, attempting to pull her out of Aizen's grasp. Aizen, of course, wouldn't give up his 'prize' so easily. "Get your hands off Koori, you bastard!"

Aizen could only grin sadistically. "_Yare, yare…_What's with kids and their choice of language nowadays?"

Hitsugaya ignored the sarcastic comment. "I _**said**_, get your hands _**off **_Koori!" He pulled Koori in closer to him as Koori cried out for Hitsugaya to pull her in. Aizen's face fell for once and he tugged effortlessly. Koori got pulled closer to him. Hitsugaya focused his reiatsu into his arms and pulled with all his might. Alas, Aizen lost his grip on Koori's arm and she fell on top of Hitsugaya.

"Toushirou…" She was crying. "_A…arigatou…_"

Hitsugaya gave her a comforting smile before he stood up and gave Aizen a cold glare. "Aizen, what are you doing here?!" he exclaimed as he pointed Hyourinmaru at Aizen.

"I just came to get what I deserve," Aizen simply replied with a grin.

"What do you want with Koori?!" Hitsugaya demanded as Hyourinmaru's blade collided with Kyouka Suigetsu's.

"Why, Toushirou-kun, didn't my sweet child Koori-chan tell you?" Aizen taunted with an even wider grin. "She's the key to the Soul Society's very own downfall."

Hitsugaya's eyes widened. "What?"

"All this while, I've been manifesting my reiatsu into Hougyoku, hoping that I would be able to unlock its full potential as quickly as possible to claim my rightful place as ruler of the heavens and earth, but even my reiatsu is not enough to coax Hougyoku into displaying its full power," Aizen explained. "However, as former captain, I have read many scrolls on myths and legends that took place during Soul Society's rich history. There was one that caught my eye and it involved this cute little heavenly guardian over here." As soon as Aizen finished his sentence, he shunpo-ed away from Hitsugaya and over to Koori.

Hitsugaya glanced at Koori who was backing away from Aizen. He shunpo-ed in front of Koori in an attempt to protect her. "So…you're thinking about using Koori's reiatsu to unlock the Hougyoku because it is high enough."

Aizen grinned, showing his teeth. "You _**are **_a genius after all, Hitsugaya Toushirou-kun. At first, I thought your reiatsu would be high enough so I asked Gin to take you to Hueco Mondo where I used the Hougyoku on you, hoping that I would be able to make your reiatsu grow twice as powerful. However, I realized that I was wrong. I couldn't turn you into a vaizard because you were already a vaizard to begin with." He brushed away a wisp of his chestnut brown hair, getting really immersed in revealing his case studies. "It excited me, Toushirou-kun, so I was hoping the Hougyoku would bring out the hollow within you and help me in awakening Hougyoku. Unfortunately, that very same hollow was unwilling to become part of my army and escaped. Surely you still remember that?"

Koori ducked behind Hitsugaya's back and buried her face in her hands. How could she not forget? She acted like the villain to Hitsugaya, losing his trust in her initially. She hated herself for acting so mean. It was like as if she had split personalities, or rather, she changed personalities when she changed genders. Hitsugaya continued glaring at Aizen as the bastard continued, "And then after some more checking up, I realized that all this time, _**you **_were the incarnation of that heavenly guardian who was part of the legend that caught my eye. Of course, the original is always the best so I had my eye on little Koori here. It's strange, is it not? That your previous incarnation, your best friend, is also going to be the one who will destroy you?"

"Toushirou, I would never do that to you!" Koori exclaimed in fright. This was all too much for her to digest…All Fuyu no Hana told her was that she would die if she got close to the Hougyoku; she never told her that Aizen wanted her to do this!

"Ah, but you will, even if you don't want to. Because I'm sure Hougyoku will be able to sway you from the enemy's side," Aizen sneered as Ichimaru nodded and grabbed this chance to capture Koori. He shunpo-ed over to Koori and grabbed her by the neck as soon as Meian got distracted for just one short and speedy second.

"Koori!" Hitsugaya called out as he tried to reel her back in but Ulquiorra managed to step in between them and kick him away as he opened the garganta. The Kurayami _kyoudai _and Ichigo tried to stop them from making their escape but Aizen stepped in as well and raised his reiatsu to the maximum, stopping all of their attempts to even get close. Kage managed to reach within Koori's range, for some reason, but Grimmjaw blasted her away with a cero. "Kage!" Hitsugaya called. He mustered up his reiatsu which was just enough to level with Aizen's and shunpo-ed towards the crying Koori.

"Toushirou!!! I don't want to go with them!" Koori cried as she stretched out her arms.

"I know, Koori! I know!" Hitsugaya shouted as he stretched out his and tried to grab her arms. He was about to reach her when he felt something pain centering on his stomach. "Wha…" Hitsugaya muttered as he looked down at his stomach area. The blood-coated blade of Kyouka Suigetsu was sticking out of it with Aizen holding onto the sick green hilt.

"Toushirou!" Koori called out concernedly. Aizen pulled the blade out and Hitsugaya fell on his back with blood gushing out of his wound like a river. "No! Toushirou! Don't die!"

"K-Koori…"

At one end of the park, Kage was crying. "Tou-chan…"

Merenaito and Meian were struggling to keep the tears from spilling out as their legs stayed rooted to the ground, unwilling to move when they wanted them to. Ichigo was cursing at the high amount of reiatsu Aizen was sending out, otherwise he'd be able to land a helping hand. Koori's last hope – Hitsugaya – had been stabbed by the traitorous bastard yet again.

The garganta had fully opened.

"No! Let go of me, you bastards! _**YOU BASTARDS!!! **_LET GO OF ME!!!" Koori cried out in pained agony as she struggled in Ichimaru's arms. "TOUSHIROU!!!!!"

Hitsugaya panted as his vision began to blur. All he saw were the damned bastards with Koori in their grasp as they stepped into the garganta. As the garganta faded away slowly, Hitsugaya exhaled and finally succumbed to the fainting spell.

"_I'm sorry…Koori…I tried."_

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A/N: Yes, Aizen finally revealed his plans. But there's an even more scheming plan coming up next in the ending few chapters. Yup, The Mask of Ice is coming to its end. About seven or more chapters and this story will be done. Of course, there's still the sequel which will be even longer, so yay!

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_We will not go to Hueco Mondo and save your ex-friend."_

"_But why, soutaichou?!"_

"_She has already defected to the enemy's side, as well as Inoue Orihime. We have already lost them; I have considered them dead."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I'm coming with you. I'm not hanging around and waiting for the worst to happen."_

"_Wow, Toushirou, I had no idea there's a rebellious side to you."_

"_Don't speak as if you know me, Kurosaki."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_You're just like your father, Toushirou; always putting your friends as your top priority."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**


	19. 十九　じゅうきゅう

Author's Note: I received very…_**disheartening **_anonymous reviews by the same person saying that I suck. Well, I just wanna say that I know I said that I accept flames _**that are not hurtful**_. Using vulgarities like asking me to 'burn in hell' and that I'm shit is crossing the line, but I'm letting it slide _**this time. **_I could've just easily deleted those anonymous reviews but I don't know what in the world possessed me to leave them there. If the same person insults me like that again, I will personally delete it because I won't give a damn.

I accept _**constructive criticisms**_, which means that you can still say I suck, but at least say in what way do I suck. Don't just plainly say I suck because I won't know how to improve, alright?

Well, according to the polite baka who flamed me, he/she said that the character personalities are wrong and all of them are. Well, let's get something straight: I _**clearly **_said that it will get damn OOC, and I mean it so don't go flaming me for something I've already warned. He/she even thought I was eight. Let's get something _**else **_straight here: I'm thirteen, not eight, so don't you dare go assuming my age ever again.

No thanks to the kindest person in the world, I shall now try my best to keep the characters in-character. (Easier said than done; everyone has his/her own limitations…)

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 19 – Onward to Hueco Mondo

The first thing that he saw was the blinding light from the light bulb hanging from the ceiling. At first, his vision was blurred, but after series of blinking, his vision became much clearer. Sitting up slowly, he winced as he held his newfound wound on his stomach which had been patched up by first-aid bandages. Looking down at his wound, he could see the dried blood that had stained his bandages since gawd-knows-when. He glanced at the clock on the wall. That late already? It was only three plus when they all went to the park and-

His eyes widened as memories of what respired in the park replayed in his mind. Garganta. Aizen. Koori. Himself. Aizen. Koori. Himself. Aizen. Koori. Ichimaru. Espada. Garganta. Blood. Aizen. Koori.

_**Koori…**_

She had been taken…away to Hueco Mondo…hadn't she?

Or had her gender returned to being a male since Hueco Mondo was full of spirit particles, like Soul Society?

Hearing some shouts coming from the living room, he got off the bed slowly as he limped over towards the door and opened it just enough to hear properly. He could hear Kage exclaiming protests while Ichigo and Merenaito weren't joining in the protests. Kage and Meian often switched roles of being the protestor and it wasn't long till Ichigo joined in with a booming voice, cursing.

Hitsugaya Toushirou did _**not **_like what he was hearing.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"So," Meian began by breaking the silence. "…How is he?"

Ichigo let out a frustrated sigh as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Lost hell lot of blood, but he'll live. Toushirou's always been like that."

"I didn't know an idiot like you had medical knowledge, to be frank," Merenaito stated as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Oi!" Ichigo exclaimed, a vein throbbing on his head. "Who're you calling an idiot? And besides, that lunatic of a father of mine is a doctor; why can't I have a little bit of medical knowledge, huh?"

Meian picked up a magazine from the table and whacked Ichigo on the head with it. While Ichigo was about to hurl insults at the hyperactive jet black-haired girl, she brought up her index finger to her mouth to indicate silence. "Keep your voice down, baka. Tou-Tou needs to have some rest and Kage's making a report to Soul Society over the lousy mobile phone, so keep your voice down."

Muttering something incoherent under his breath, Ichigo somewhat sighed in defeat and scoffed as he folded his arms. Moments later, Kage could be heard shouting over the mobile phone. "But soutaichou, if we delay any longer, Koori might-!"

Obviously the daft old man was not willing to let Kage speak any further. Over at the 12th Division, Yamamoto spoke coldly into the communicator linked to the mobile phone, "We will not go to Hueco Mondo and save your ex-friend."

"But why, soutaichou?!" Kage cried in baffled response.

"She has already defected to the enemy's side, as well as Inoue Orihime. We have already lost them; I have considered them dead," he continued just as coldly with sour bitterness clearly evidenced in his voice.

Kage couldn't believe what she had heard from the old bastard's mouth. "What? How could you be so cruel to say that!"

Without warning, Meian grabbed the phone and screamed into it, "Hey, you bastard, you listen up! I don't care what you just said about Koori and Orihime…" Upon hearing Orihime being mentioned, Ichigo went nearer to the two protestors. "…but if it's enough to make Kage shout at you like that, it must be horrible! Shame on you, you so-called soutaichou!"

"Calm down at once, Meian-taichou, and withdraw what you have just said!" Yamamoto demanded, banging his staff in anger.

Meian heard the bang perfectly, but would it stop her? Nooo…

"Even if you _**think **_Koori and Orihime are on the enemy's side right now, you're wrong!" Meian continued to protest, her voice getting sharper and higher. "And even if you don't let us, _**we'll **_go there and save them without your damned help!"

Kage snatched the phone from Meian who didn't mind it and added on, "Remove us from the captain posts for all you like, old man, because if being a captain is to just obey your every single order like a poor innocent dog obeying its bloody and heartless master all this damned time, then we don't want the captaincy any longer!"

Merenaito felt like joining in the fray as well, seeing that she couldn't take any more of the soutaichou's shit, but she refrained herself from doing so as it would be awkward for her to spout the most beautiful words in the world when she was the most refined out of her three sisters. On the contrary, Ichigo couldn't take it anymore and wanted to grab the phone and yell in the old bastard's ear, but Kage and Meian were already excelling in that. Waiting furiously for Yamamoto to say something, Kage and Meian glared at every single thing they saw in the Kurosaki household. After a long while, Yamamoto finally spoke, "You know fully well that Soul Society cannot afford to lose any more of its captains. That's why I allowed Hitsugaya-taichou to return to Soul Society in the first place. However, I am proved to be wrong about that certain decision, seeing that you are all certain about losing your places as captains. Inform Hitsugaya-taichou that he need not return to Soul Society anymore, but you and your sisters, as captains, are required to return to Soul Society after your repentance period."

"Are you deaf or something? Or did you lose your hearing aid?" Kage argued bitingly. "_**I said that we don't want the captaincy any longer!**_"

"Soul Society cannot afford to lose any more of its captains!" Yamamoto repeated, getting very impatient and upset.

At that point of time, Merenaito and Kage had already switched their positions. Merenaito asked coolly, "So why is it that you can afford Toushirou's loss?"

"If he is so protective of convict Koori, there is no telling of how he might rebel against Soul Society so as to save her." Yamamoto became strangely calm and collected. "There is also a question on his trustworthiness; I cannot let someone like him remain as a captain." Without even letting Merenaito say anything else, the old bastard cut off the connection.

Hearing static over the phone, Merenaito sighed and folded the clam shell phone back. Seeing her upset reaction, Kage hissed a very long curse meant for the old man and Meian attempted to toss an expensive glass vase when Ichigo stopped her and smashed it personally. Clearly, he wanted to vent his anger as well. How dare that old man deny them the right to dive into Hueco Mondo and rescue the two girls! For all they knew, they might even be able to save them and thus officially drag them back into _**their **_side! Why couldn't the old bastard think of the logic?!

"Now…" Merenaito began as she sighed sadly. "Who's going to break the news to Toushirou?"

Just as she said that, they all fell into silence and stopped what they were doing. For a shinigami with pride and dignity, it would be hard, really hard, to just tell Hitsugaya that he lost his place as captain. No way were they going to go up to him and smile and say, "Hi, Toushirou, do know that you're no longer captain?" It was too blunt and straightforward; the beating-about-the-bush method wouldn't be effective either since Hitsugaya liked things coming straight to the point and he'd just get doubly pissed if someone beat about the bush about his ex-captaincy. After all, it was probably one of the toughest things to get over for Hitsugaya – the fact that Yamamoto even went so low to see him as the enemy.

Seeing that no one volunteered to get her ass frozen, Ichigo offered to lose his instead. As he turned to walk towards the door, he gaped at the gap between the door and the wall. It was perfectly big enough for every single thing they had just shouted to enter through the gap. Heck, it might've had even woken the white-haired genius up. He might've even heard everything! Ichigo mentally cursed as he braced himself for Hyourinmaru. He walked up noiselessly and creaked open the door. It was brightly-lit inside since he forgot to switch the light off but right there lying on the bed was none other than Hitsugaya Toushirou himself. Ichigo leaned over and whispered 'Toushirou' in Hitsugaya's ear, but instead of the usual 'it's Hitsugaya-taichou' reply, Hitsugaya's back turned to face Ichigo and the white-haired prodigy muttered something incoherent. When he sensed a pause, he repeated what he had said, "Don't worry, Kurosaki. I'm fine."

"…You sure?" Ichigo asked in concern. "I mean, you just lost your title and-"

"I said I'm fine!" Hitsugaya cut in icily as he quickly sat up and glared at Ichigo before wincing as he held onto his wound.

"Oi, don't move around so much!" Ichigo stated, or more like ordered. Hitsugaya shot him another glare and lied back down. Not like he had any more authority to tell Ichigo what and what not to do. "Anyway, even if you say you're fine, I know you're not, coz that bastard of an old man cut you real deep. Look at the girls; they're usually strong but today even they acted like freaked out rats," Ichigo whispered the last comment lest he spent the next three weeks lying in bed with deep slashes and bruises all over his body.

"Why do _**you **_care, Kurosaki?" Hitsugaya spat coldly, folding his arms. He was _**not **_going to let that orange-haired buffoon see through his mask of ice and discover the hurt pride within. "You don't know me that much."

"I know you long enough to see that you treasure your place as captain, you cocky bastard," Ichigo replied with a scowl. He didn't mean the last bit, of course, but he felt the urge to say that. "And I can see that you'll go berserk if you ever lose it, and you did."

Hitsugaya felt the urge to call upon Hyourinmaru and freeze Ichigo's ass, but he didn't. "I'm not going to go insane, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya stubbornly retorted, not letting the orange-haired vaizard get even the slightest hint that he was hurt emotionally.

"Saying that you're fine makes you insane already, kid," Ichigo argued as calmly as he could. "Look, you lost your place as captain. So what? You're still Toushirou; the cocky, stubborn and prideful Toushirou from before. Losing your place as captain doesn't change who you are, does it?"

Hitsugaya arched an eyebrow at that statement. "…I didn't know there was a philosophical side to you, Kurosaki."

"Philoso-what?"

Hitsugaya groaned. "Never mind…"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Ah, Ichigo-san, you have come!" Urahara exclaimed excitedly, particularly at the three girls who came along as well. "I assume that you are all prepared?"

"Ah," Ichigo replied with the usual frown on his face. "They came to dump the gigai as well."

"Hm, I understand," Urahara replied in a very suggestive manner. "I'll be getting everything ready so just place your gigai back into the room over there," he directed towards the closed room with his folded fan. "It'll get done very quickly, so you can move along faster."

"_Arigatou, _Urahara-san," Ichigo thanked as he rushed to the sandy grounds outside the Urahara Shoten. Merenaito and Kage solemnly walked towards the closed room and slid the door open while Meian was shooting daggers at Urahara. When the Kurayami _kyoudai _had entered the room, they locked the door lest some pervert got in.

Urahara Kisuke shrugged as he grinned.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

As the portal opened, the strong winds caused by the fluctuation in reiatsu surrounding the grounds blew against Ichigo's and the Kurayami _kyoudai's _hair, causing them to fly around wildly. Keeping their stances steady, Ichigo turned to thank Urahara once more while the Kurayami _kyoudai _simply rolled their eyes. Just as they were about to jump into the portal that would lead them to Hueco Mondo, a familiar icy sharp voice stopped them in their tracks. "Oi, where do you think you're going?"

The group tilted their heads to see who was there and leaning against the wall was Hitsugaya in full shinigami form, haori-less, but with Hyourinmaru strapped to his back, as always. "We're going to Hueco Mondo to save Koori and Orihime," Kage replied casually. Seeing that Hitsugaya didn't reply, Kage arched an eyebrow. "Aren't you going to stop us? Aren't you going to say that dear Yamamoto-soutaichou will not hear of it? Hmm?"

"_Shame on you, you so-called soutaichou!"_

…Dear Yamamoto-soutaichou…did she just say that? In the first place, it was the very same soutaichou who sent him to the material world and put him to the test but in the end removed his place as captain. Why did he carry on when he was just going to get the boot in the end?

"_And even if you don't let us, __**we'll **__go there and save them without your damned help!"_

…Even if Merenaito, Kage and Meian were to lose their places as captains, they were willing to give it all up to save Koori and Orihime. Did he have the guts to do so when he was just being a blind, loyal captain all this damned time?

"_Remove us from the captain posts for all you like, old man, because if being a captain is to just obey your every single order like a poor innocent dog obeying its bloody and heartless master all this damned time, then we don't want the captaincy any longer!"_

…That was so true. If being a captain was just to obey soutaichou's every whim, then what was the point of carrying on as a captain if you had no mind of your own and just follow blindly?

"_So why is it that you can afford Toushirou's loss?"_

…Why should he still stay loyal to Soul Society when they could afford losing him in the first place? Didn't that sound like as if he was being used by Soul Society just like how Aizen used him? Even if it sounded the same, his goal would still be to stop Aizen from destroying Soul Society as well as to ensure Koori's safety.

"_Look, you lost your place as captain. So what? You're still Toushirou; the cocky, stubborn and prideful Toushirou from before. Losing your place as captain doesn't change who you are, does it?"_

…No. It most definitely didn't.

"I'm coming with you," Hitsugaya spoke as he walked towards them. "I'm not hanging around and waiting for the worst to happen." When they all stared at him wide-eyed, he arched an eyebrow and blinked expectantly like as if asking 'what?'

Ichigo was the first to get the shock out of his systems. "Wow, Toushirou, I had no idea there's a rebellious side to you."

It shocked him even further to see an extremely small cocky grin on Hitsugaya's face. It was still there, anyway. _"Now that sounds familiar…" Hitsugaya thought to himself. _Regaining his composure, he looked away and avoided Ichigo's gaze. "Don't speak as if you know me, Kurosaki."

Ichigo grinned confidently. Looks like his speech really _**did **_wake the young prodigy up after all. "Oh, I know you long enough."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

A light knock on the door of the 8th Division office stirred the dozing Kyouraku awake. He looked around in a dumbfounded manner before the knocking registered into his mind. Figuring that it was his sweet Nanao-chan, his eyes brightened up and he called out, "Come in!"

Much to his disappointment, it was his 6th seat officer instead. Haruna entered with a tray of nicely brewed tea and placed it on his working desk. "Taichou," she acknowledged as she bowed.

"Ah…Haruna-chan…" Kyouraku replied in a daze, upset that it wasn't Nanao.

"Um…Taichou, may I ask you something?"

Kyouraku brightened up again. If he wasn't going to 'hang out' with Nanao today, any pretty girl that came along would do just fine! He asked, containing his excitement, "Yes, go ahead, Haruna-chan!"

Haruna shifted uncomfortably. "I…heard about what happened to Hitsugaya-taichou, and I would like to ask…Is he really going to infiltrate into Aizen's headquarters in Hueco Mondo and save his friend?"

Kyouraku brought the straw hat down to cover his eyes so as to not show his utter disappointment. He was hoping for some fun. "Yeah. According to Yama-jii, he is."

Haruna smiled warmly. "_Arigatou gozaimasu _for telling me, taichou," she thanked as she bowed and took her leave. Hastily walking to the heart of Seireitei, she looked around with the smile still etched on her face, and immediately resorted to shunpo to get to the Soukyoku Hill, hoping that no one followed her. She looked around once more before moving carefully into the cave underneath the Soukyoku Hill where she heard an old Arrancar Arturo was sealed in (A/N: Reference to Shattered Blade game). She ran deep into the cave as the sunlight from the outside world slowly dimmed. She came to the end of the cave where a magnificent ice crystal was growing and knelt down. Cradling the ice crystal onto her lap, she sighed contentedly, "You're just like your father, Toushirou." She rubbed the crystal as if she was polishing it. "Always putting your friends as your top priority."

As she finished rubbing it, she placed it back to its original position and wiped a tear from her eye. Carved on the crystal were beautifully carved Kanji words with a shape of a heart between some of the Kanji. It read:

**日番谷霰****heart ****氷雪春名**

**Hitsugaya Arare heart Hyousetsu Haruna**

**＜ブリーチ＞**

It was time.

Everything was ready; the portal, their weapons, themselves.

All it took would be the determination and belief to charge on and accomplish their objective in the dangerous mission opposed by Soul Society.

Hitsugaya Toushirou took charge and the others followed.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"No point in struggling, my child," Aizen spoke as he held onto Koori by the neck. The white-haired boy continued to struggle as he tried to pull Aizen's fingers away from his neck, but to no avail. Raising his reiatsu did no good, and it wasn't possible to call upon Fuyu no Hana for help when he couldn't reach the hilt. Strapping him down to an experimenting table, Aizen chuckled and held onto something sparkling in the dark room. Koori glanced at it. It was recognizably the Hougyoku still in is 'sleeping' state.

What was Aizen up to now?

Pulling Koori closer to his lips which had curled into a very satisfied and sadistic grin, Aizen whispered in Koori's ear, "Do not worry, Koori-chan. It will all be over soon…"

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A/N: If that was short, I aplogise. It's not because I was in a foul mood; note the past tense. It's just that it's supposed to be pretty short. Don't worry, I promise, I'll try to make the next chapter longer!

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Aizen-sama! Intruders!"_

"_Get rid of them quickly. …On second thought, bring them to me. I want them to witness this grand occasion."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Out of my way!"_

"_Heh, not a chance, Ichigo!"_

"_Damn you, Grimmjaw!"_

"_I've been wanting a rematch now…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I guess you leave me with no choice."_

"_What on earth are you talking about? I have eight arms! It's not like you had a choice to begin with!"_

"_Oh, you're wrong. Very wrong. There's always a choice in everything. It all depends on what choice I choose. And looks like I'll have to resort to my shikai…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Tou…shi…rou…S-save…me…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Like I said, there's a twist in the timeline so count this fic as somewhat of an AU. The twist is that Hitsugaya and team didn't battle Luppi and others. Since I made Orihime go to Hueco Mondo already, she kinda healed Grimmjaw's arm so now we have two 6th Espadas. XD I'll try to fix that…


	20. 二十　にじゅう

Author's Note: Yayz! I love y'all for reviewing! XD

And I apologise for the long wait…I'll try my best to keep on updating. It's just that…I'm getting quite lazy nowadays, since it's the holidays and all, but hey, that's no excuse, so here's an update, just like I promised! And…I got really motivated by the new DiamondDust Rebellion trailer. Yayz!

Oh yes, expect quite late updates because I'm addicted to killing Hinamori and Aizen off in my new Shattered Blade so yeah.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters.

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Chapter 20 – Invading Hueco Mondo! Aizen's True Motives

Sand.

The land was all filled with sand. Nothing more, and nothing less. The harsh winds in the desert-like Hueco Mondo blew the sand particles right in their faces as they shielded their faces with their arms, their hair being blown around wildly with the winds. Hitsugaya and his team trudged their way towards Las Noches, which appeared to be an eternity worth's walk away. The thick sand, the winds and Ichigo's and Meian's complaints did not help them make any progress at all. Merenaito and Kage kept quiet throughout the whole thing and trudging along melancholically while Hitsugaya had a bit of trouble trying to make the hot-headed Ichigo and the (very) emotional Meian keep quiet. As another harsh wind blew directly at them, Hitsugaya mentally noted himself to bring mantles the next time they came, if they would ever come again, that is.

At this rate, they weren't even sure if they would get out of Hueco Mondo alive, let alone making another survival trip back there.

The endless path filled with nothing but sand was not keeping their spirits up either. What would happen to them now…?

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"What…what are you going to do to me…?"

Aizen could only chuckle sinisterly at Koori's frightened reaction. He glanced at the young boy who had the timid yet delicate personality traits of a three-year-old girl. It was no surprise; Koori _**was **_a human girl before, and the only factor that changed his personality and looks would be the reiatsu level of the place he would be in. In the human world, Aizen noted silently, Koori would resume his female form with her original personality traits, only that it would appear to be older since she died young. In Soul Society and Seireitei, Koori would become a full-fledged boy with no fears and hesitation when it came to deciding important matters. However, in Hueco Mondo…in Las Noches…He would still appear to be a boy but with the personality traits of his female form. How…_**interesting…**_

"Well, Koori-chan, you certainly have changed since we last met at Hueco Mondo," Aizen began, ignoring Koori's question. "If I remember correctly, at that point of time, you were pretty rebellious, weren't you? And now, you're shaking like a leaf. Would the factor be something or someone I know?"

Koori exhaled deeply. "You don't need to know, _teme_…" he spoke in a waning tone, forgetting his fears.

"Hm, getting braver now, aren't we? Well, I'll just have to fix that when this is all over…"

Just as Aizen was reaching out for the shimmering Hougyoku to begin the process he was boasting about, the doors to the experimental lab opened with a bang, and the pink-haired Espada Szayel came running towards his master. "Aizen-sama!" he exclaimed hurriedly. "Intruders!"

Aizen locked eyes with Szayel. He knew fully well who the intruders were. He gave Koori another glance and then at the Hougyoku. It was a great opportunity to do _**that **_right now, and he wasn't going to have anyone interrupting him. "Get rid of them quickly," he ordered in a soft voice as he turned around to face Koori when a sudden jolt of the sadistic inspiration came at him. His eerie smile gave Koori the shivers and goose bumps. The sadist turned around and spoke, "...On second thought, bring them to me. I want them to witness this grand occasion."

"_Hai, _Aizen-sama."

"Bring anyone you want with you. Just bring them here without killing them unless you have my permission," Aizen ordered as Szayel bowed before he rushed out to gather as many Espadas as he could on Aizen's order. The chestnut-haired sadist closed the door and walked towards Koori, his slow footsteps echoing in the vast room. Koori closed his sapphire orbs shut as beads of sweat came rolling down his face. He began fearing for his life.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Next time we walk a thousand miles, remind me beforehand that you can _**teleport**_!!!" Ichigo exclaimed as he dusted the sand off his shihakushou, a vein throbbing on his forehead. Hitsugaya and the two elders of the Kurayami _kyoudai _silently brushed the sand off their sleeves, not wanting to be in the middle of yet one more argument. Meian scoffed at Ichigo's angry response as she skipped in front of him, as if taunting the orange strawberry even further. Ichigo growled at her and moved on.

"Mask your reiatsu," commanded Kage suddenly as she stopped dead in her tracks. "I sense five Espadas coming our way."

"Are you able to identify who?" Hitsugaya asked curiously. "I must admit…back at the academy, you _**were **_the best with reiatsu-sensing…" he softly admitted, folding his arms.

Kage gave him a light-hearted grin. It wasn't like the white-haired prodigy to admit to things like that, so she better treasure his confession. She closed her eyes as her expression went back to all seriousness. "There are these two Espadas that we fought before…I think it was when Aizen took Koori away. And the rest, I have not felt before."

"So it's the _teme _Grimmjaw and that trash guy, right?" Ichigo asked. "Damn, of all stupid Arrancars, it had to be those two."

"Keep your voice down," Merenaito quietly spoke. "If they hear you, they'll surely come here and pick a fight. We can't afford to waste any time here."

"If it's a fight they want, then it's a fight they'll get! I'll whack their asses so bad that Aizen himself will come here and deal with me!"

Meian smacked the back of his head with the hilt of her zanpakutou and folded her arms with a huff. "You're such a cocky human…" she muttered under her breath. Ichigo scowled and rubbed his head once he heard that. "Do you realize that if we waste time fighting, we'll be giving Aizen a higher chance of accomplishing his goals?! And besides, _baka_, you want to save your friend too, don't you? So we'd better get up on our asses and move already!"

"…You got so much big talk, why don't you move yourself…?" Ichigo mumbled under his breath as he quickly moved away from Meian's wrath.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"Ah…! I'm tingling with excitement!" a female-like male Espada exclaimed as he hopped along the group consisting of the fighting fanatic Grimmjaw, the silent but deadly Ulquiorra, mad scientist Szayel and the burly Yammy. "I can't wait to see exactly how strong our opponents will be!"

"Shut the hell up, Luppi," Grimmjaw complained, digging his ear. "Your voice is hurting my eardrums already."

Luppi scoffed and folded his long-sleeved arms, not saying anything but hurling curses and insults at Grimmjaw mentally. "The opponents," Ulquiorra muttered monotonously. "are not pieces of trash like the worthless humans in the real world. We will be facing more than just useless trash, so we'd better be on our guard."

"Psheh," Grimmjaw grunted with a large grin. "If Ichigo's one of 'em, I'm taking him on! I've been wanting to get my revenge, and I _**will **_get my revenge!"

"…I shall take care of the one who is the least trash-like out of all of them," Ulquiorra spoke, indirectly meaning that he would be reserving the strongest for him to battle.

"Remember Aizen-sama's orders," Szayel reminded the other Espadas. "We have to bring them back to him, alive."

"Says the one who wants to research on the most intriguing out of all of them," Luppi retorted. Szayel kept quiet throughout the entire trip, avoiding eye contact with the gay Espada. (A/N: If there are any Luppi fans, I'm sorry. Coz I really hate Luppi, period.)

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Excited aquamarine eyes burning with the intent to kill met with determined brown eyes expressing the intent to win. Grimmjaw smirked confidently as he leaned against the edge of the door leading to the main hall which would eventually lead to the experiment room. Ichigo gritted his teeth in anger. "Out of my way!" he exclaimed, bringing up his hand to Zangetsu's bandaged hilt.

Grimmjaw's grin only widened. "Heh, not a chance, Ichigo!"

"Damn you, Grimmjaw!" Ichigo cursed as he unsheathed Zangetsu, pointing his trusty zanpakutou at the 6th Espada.

The abdomen-holed Espada stretched his arm out and got into a fighting stance. He built up his blue cero on his outstretched palm, the grin not leaving his face. "I've been wanting a rematch now…" The cero blasted out from his palm and dashed towards Ichigo in blinding speed. Ichigo held up Zangetsu as a shield and didn't get hurt as a result, but he was pushed right off his feet.

Hitsugaya had his own Espada problems to solve as he shunpo-ed out of the way of Szayel who had this urge to capture Hitsugaya and research on that fascinating reiatsu level of his. It was so high; he had never seen such high level of reiatsu before, not even in his life as the 8th Espada. Sure, the rest all had very high reiatsu levels, but the boy's was just so…so intriguing! In actuality, he wanted to go after this girl with the stumpy black-hilted zanpakutou strapped to her back waist but she was already being taken on by Luppi. And once more, in yet another actuality, it was the melancholic Ulquiorra who found her the least 'trash-like' out of the group but Luppi 'kindly' offered to take her on instead, so it became a match between melancholy and melancholy, or to be more exact, Ulquiorra and Merenaito. The small but adorable Meian was already winning the fight against the 10th Espada and she didn't find the need to release her zanpakutou at all. She was relying purely on her agility and brute strength, which was exceptionally great for a girl of her age and stature.

Hitsugaya mixed jumping with shunpo for a shunpo-jump combo as he disappeared from Szayel's sight one moment, and reappeared in the air the next. He unsheathed Hyourinmaru and called upon the dragon of ice for help as the freezing cold manifestation of his reiatsu came rushing down at the Mayuri-wannabe. Szayel jumped away, hoping that the waters wouldn't reach him, as he had calculated beforehand that if he were to get caught in the waters, he would be instantly frozen in his place. But he didn't expect Hitsugaya's goal would be freezing the ground, and not him, as the white-haired _tensai _skated across the ice floor combined with agile shunpo to stab him right in the stomach. Szayel's pupils dilated as the ice crept up, threatening to freeze him solid. As Hitsugaya tugged the blade of Hyourinmaru out of Szayel's frozen stomach, blood gushed out before turning into the solid blood ice state. Szayel fell to the ground with a sickening thud. The 8th Espada couldn't believe that he had miscalculated and lost…to a mere boy.

Meian's incessant giggling got on Yammy's nerves as his poor aiming for his cero kept missing her. Or was it her exceptionally high speed that kept making him miss? Meian loved resorting to her kidou every now and then, jumping from corner to corner of the room. It was making even the 4th Espada dizzy in which Merenaito made use of as an opening sometimes. And as if mimicking the two martial art experts, Yoruichi and Soifon (A/N: Sorry, I wrongly wrote it as Soi Fong before), Meian combined kidou with hand-to-hand combat as she gave Yammy a tight smack on the middle of his seemingly bald head. Though it wasn't so accurately the devastatingly powerful _shunko (Flash Cry), _it was still powerful enough to knock the 10th Espada out cold. Meian giggled once more, appreciating the fact that her division was right next to the 2nd Division.

Merenaito made use of openings to give Ulquiorra a good stab here and there, but the high-ranked Espada would not give her the chance to as he shielded himself from her futile attacks with his steely arms. Merenaito narrowed her eyes to slits. Sure, she admitted to Kage and Meian once that her zanpakutou was not exactly for combat, as she remembered, but she didn't expect her zanpakutou not being sharp or strong enough to pierce through the 4th Espada's tough skin. At this rate, she would have to call upon her zanpakutou's shikai, but even she wasn't so confident that it would help if it wouldn't even land a direct hit on him. Ulquiorra was still using his arms to attack, and not his zanpakutou, for he mentally decided that he wouldn't need his zanpakutou during the fight at all. Merenaito gritted her teeth. She had no other choice. "Fine. I'll give you a challenge, if you're hoping for it."

Kage cursed as she dodged another blow from one of Luppi's eight arms. From the corner of her eyes, she could tell that the others had pretty easy fights, save for Merenaito who had to deal with the most powerful out of the group of Espadas sent to 'escort' them. She had been trying all means and ways, mainly her strength – kidou – but those eight arms weren't only annoying but rather steely too. The most she could do was land a _**very **_painful singe, but it wasn't life-threatening, which she was going for. She eyed the hilt of her zanpakutou and jumped out of the way of the swinging arms. She jumped backwards and landed on the ground with her palms face down and jumped back to her feet, her zanpakutou already unsheathed. "…I guess you leave me with no choice," she muttered, placing her hand on the blade of her zanpakutou.

Luppi paused before laughing it off. "What on earth are you talking about?" he taunted cockily. "I have eight arms! It's not like you had a choice to begin with!"

"Oh, you're wrong. Very wrong," Kage replied in a soft and waning tone as her hand trailed down the blade in a challenging manner. "There's always a choice in everything. It all depends on what choice I choose." Her blade began to darken with a black aura seeping out from all sides when her hand left the blade, and the rise in reiatsu caused her hair and her shihakushou (haori-less) to fly around wildly. "And looks like I'll have to resort to my shikai…"

Before she could call out her zanpakutou's name, a glistening black blade came flying towards Luppi without warning and stabbed him at his side, letting the blood flow out slowly. The zanpakutou slightly resembled Tobiume in the released state, except that the prongs weren't as long and bulky. Instead, they were small and dainty, and the prongs came in pairs in an orderly fashion. Kage sealed back her reiatsu and allowed her zanpakutou to return to its sealed state as Merenaito came and pulled the blade out of Luppi's side. As Luppi went hysterical all of a sudden, Merenaito gave him a strong punch that sent him flying to the wall. "Kage," she spoke in a low tone as she returned her zanpakutou to its sealed state as well. "You _**know **_you're not allowed to use your zanpakutou as and when you like it."

Kage sighed, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. It was the millionth time Merenaito was giving her a good lecture. "I saw that it was necessary."

Merenaito opened her mouth to argue but Ichigo's voice distracted her, "Oi, enough with the talk! We gotta go! _**Now!**_"

Ichigo and Hitsugaya rushed on ahead, not waiting for the sisters to catch up since Hitsugaya knew that they would in the end. Meian hopped over to Kage and asked in concern, "Kage, are you all right?"

Kage coldly swatted her younger sister's hand as she walked away. "I'm fine. As long as I don't use bankai, I'm fine."

"If you use your shikai…it's already bad enough," Merenaito reprimanded, following her. Meian trailed behind, not taking Kage's cold response all too seriously. "I don't want you to end up like how you ended up before."

"I won't, Meru. How many times must I tell you that?"

Merenaito sighed wearily. "You always say that, Kage, but I know that deep inside, you're scared to use your zanpakutou at full strength. No, you're not scared – you're completely shaken with terror and fright even at the thought of using it."

There was silence before Kage spoke once more, her cold voice penetrating through the wall of silence. "Say what you like."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"I don't suppose after such a long time, your friends will be coming to save you after all," Aizen stated, trying to dishearten Koori, or more like trying to break her as soon as possible. Koori gave him a small glare, even though deep inside, he wasn't sure what to know and believe. "Nothing you do will help you now, except beg for mercy. I might spare you the pain of dying if you give yourself to me."

"…Never, you bastard," Koori hissed. "Not even if you kill me and shed my blood upon your sword, I'll never give you my will."

"You're not only getting braver; you're getting more violent as well. That's very good," Aizen spoke with a smile that sent chills down Koori's spine, as much as he tried to hide the fear that was gripping his heart. "If I keep on dragging time before I perform that certain process on you, you might become more bold and daring, not to mention ruthless and cold. That would be the result of adjusting to the dark reiatsu level of the home of all hollows."

Koori narrowed his eyes. The bastard was spot-on…That was the very secret to Koori's power. Depending on where he would be, his power would either heighten or weaken by adjusting itself to match the reiatsu of _**every single trace **_in his area. And it wouldn't just only be matching the power alone; it would automatically adjust itself to match its _**traits**_. It wouldn't be very nice if he were to be left in Hueco Mondo for too long; Hitsugaya had suffered the consequences the first time he came. He had been enclosed for so long that Koori had already turned vicious and very much like a hollow. That explained his violent behavior before Hitsugaya returned to Soul Society. Koori's power and personality slowly readjusted back to match the pure and bleached reiatsu of Soul Society, and he was hoping that he would be able to stay like that for good. Even if he were to be banished to the material world, it would be totally fine with him too.

_**Anywhere…**_

But Hueco Mondo.

"Your silence gives me the assurance that I've been on the right track all along, Koori," Aizen indirectly thanked the heavenly guardian for dropping the hint unintentionally. "It's a wonder why Toushirou-kun doesn't have that unique ability, seeing that you and he are one. If he had that ability, I would have two heavenly guardians under my control, but I suppose that it's good enough to have _**you **_on my side."

"…The hell you're talking about, Aizen? I'm not on anybody's side," Koori coldly retorted, mentally noting that he could feel his power becoming more and more hollow-like.

"Oh, but you _**will **_come to my side, Koori. The very fact that you're here with me already shows that you have defected over to my side from Soul Society's, just like Orihime-chan."

Koori gave him another cold death glare. "I told you, I'm not on anybody's side, not even the damned bloody Soul Society's."

"_He's getting more vulgar. And his words are taking on a colder tone of voice. Those are very good signs of minor hollowfication indeed…" Aizen thought to himself sadistically. "It won't be long until his emotions go completely out of his control, and when that time comes, I will be the one who will reign his very soul."_

"Is that so, Koori?" Aizen challenged, pretending that he wasn't expecting anything. He walked over towards the Hougyoku which was resting on a small cushion like as if it were an emperor's most precious valuable in the entire universe. He touched the Hougyoku, but nothing happened. Koori blinked twice in rapid motion confusingly. Aizen began to explain, "As you can see, the Hougyoku has lost all of its power to perform shinigamification on hollows. I brought Orihime-chan to Hueco Mondo, hoping that her ability to reject past events would bring back Hougyoku's power which would thus allow me to create more and more Arrancars for my army to obliterate Soul Society. However, her abilities proved to be useless. I only kept her here because she would be useful if any of the Arrancars die."

Koori arched an eyebrow. "And what does that have to do with anything right now, you bloody _teme_?"

Ignoring the insult hurled at him, Aizen carried on with his explanation, "Moreover, the Hougyoku is supposed to temporarily perform shinigamification on hollows if it comes into contact with a reiatsu twice the level of an average captain's in Soul Society. I created my army of hollows that way, but now…Hougyoku is powerless. And the next thing I've discovered is something not even the Hougyoku's creator Urahara Kisuke himself knows about. Koori, you're the key to Hougyoku's awakening, which would restore its power and even make it full of power every time it is used. However…"

As Aizen took a few steps closer and closer to Koori, he shifted uncomfortably with the straps strapping him to the table still tightly on. Something told him that whatever Aizen was about to do to him was _**not **_going to be very pleasurable at all. Not at all…

"I have discovered that Urahara once performed _konsou (soul burial) _on a young girl when he was captain of the 12th Division. It is said that at that point of time, there was a _shinenju (pillar of memories; A/N: Reference to Bleach: Memories of Nobody movie) _in the material world, and because of that, Urahara and some of his division members were sent to the material world to locate the _shinenju_. Unbeknownst to Urahara, he found the soul of a young girl being chased by blanks. He rescued the little girl and performed _konsou _on her, and after that, the blanks all disappeared. After that, Urahara created the Hougyoku and was banished." Koori choked back a gasp. He knew exactly what Aizen was talking about. Upon seeing the look on Koori's face, Aizen grinned. "Well, _shinenju _Koori, looks like you already know what happened to your memories as a human."

Koori tried to calm himself down lest he began suffering an asthmatic attack if he even had asthma in the first place. "How…how did you…?"

"After being in contact with the Hougyoku for so long, I couldn't help myself. I'm sorry, Koori. I didn't mean to invade your privacy," Aizen cooed tauntingly, obviously not showing sincerity in his apologies. He wasn't even intending to be sincere in the first place; he had every intention to push the young boy to the point of breaking, and it would be even better if his feelings were hurt. It would speed up the process of his reiatsu adjusting itself to match all of the hollows' and Arrancars' in Hueco Mondo. "Although I must admit, it is a shock to see the beautiful relationship you shared with Kurosaki Ichigo's inner hollow."

"You…you despicable…!"

Before Koori could speak any further, Aizen raised his reiatsu to the maximum, as if trying to shut Koori's mouth. Koori tensed up at the sudden rise in reiatsu as he felt his own rising without his intention to so as to match Aizen's. "Now, now, Koori, I can't have you resisting and spewing vulgarities during the process, can I? It's such a pity your friends can't be here to save you now."

As if on cue, the doors opened with a bang and the familiar roar of a dragon echoed in the hallways. A huge tsunami-like wave of freezing cold water came rushing into the room, completely forming a floor of grand and beautiful ice. Hitsugaya Toushirou shunpo-skated across the ice and the next moment, he had Hyourinmaru's blade at Aizen's neck. Koori finally brightened up with a smile at the sight of Hitsugaya. Ichigo soon came along, Zangetsu in bankai mode, and the rescued Orihime following him. "You let Koori go, Aizen," Hitsugaya demanded coldly and calmly. "Or else I'll kill you."

Aizen smiled. "Why, Toushirou-kun, it's so good to see you again. And you too, Kurosaki Ichigo. It seems that you have rescued Orihime-chan. Very well done indeed."

As Ichigo gave Aizen a glare, Hitsugaya pressed Hyourinmaru even harder against Aizen's neck, causing a slight trail of blood to flow down the blade. "Don't get off-topic, Aizen."

"You've gotten smarter, haven't you, Toushirou-kun?" Aizen began by saying. "But you're not smart enough to figure out the truth behind your own previous incarnation."

"What the hell are you blabbering about?" Hitsugaya interrogated.

"Seeing that Soul Society will fall at my hands soon, it'll be appropriate to reveal my plans to you now. The Hougyoku was created by Urahara, and it is used to perform the taboo of shinigamification on hollows and hollowfication on shinigamis. But have you ever wondered exactly _**how **_or _**what **_gave Urahara the power to create that? It is not something an ordinary captain can do, even if he was the 12th Division captain."

"…"

"And with Koori's memories all gone, leaving nothing but a shadow of his former self with _**your **_memories, don't you wonder exactly where those memories ran off to?"

Hitsugaya's eyes widened. "You don't mean…"

Aizen's grin only widened. "I wouldn't expect any less from the _tensai_. You figured it out already. However, it's too late." Without any warning, Aizen slashed at Hitsugaya with the hidden Kyouka Suigetsu he had strapped to his obi before, and as Hitsugaya jumped away from the hit, he realized that it was a mistake. A big mistake. Aizen took hold of this chance to grab Hougyoku and raise his reiatsu to the maximum once more. Hitsugaya slightly stiffened at the force of the reiatsu while Ichigo and Orihime couldn't move at all, even though they wanted to step in and help. Raising their reiatsu was a problem as well, since Aizen's reiatsu was so great that compared to his, they felt like as if all their reiatsu had been sucked out, leaving them with nothing. Hitsugaya took heavy steps towards Koori, but the sheer power prevented him from getting anywhere nearer to him than a few feet away. Aizen grinned. He had succeeded. "Bid your farewells to Koori, because after this, he won't become _**your **_Koori anymore."

Aizen then pushed the Hougyoku right into (yes, _**into**_) Koori's chest, forcing a hollow-like hole to appear as the Hougyoku glowed brightly before discharging all of its power and reiryoku (A/N: Sorry, it's reiryoku and not reryuku. My mistake). Hitsugaya completely flinched at the shrill bloodcurdling screech coming from Koori's lips. The high-pitched scream pierced through the air particles as the reiatsu level got devastatingly out of control with the Hougyoku literally _**merging **_with the very being of Koori himself. Hitsugaya gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He wanted to save Koori, dammit! But he couldn't…The reiatsu was far too powerful. It had him totally rooted to the spot. There was nothing he could do. All he could do was watch Koori suffer in the pain and agony of merging beings with the Hougyoku. He could see that Koori's eyes were shut tight; they were shut so tight that Koori was practically shedding tears of blood. Koori's hands and feet were trembling like shit, and his upper torso was swelling up before shriveling and swelling up again, like as if it were a distressed beating heart with the veins and arteries lined on the surface.

"Tou…shi…rou…S-save me…"

Hitsugaya Toushirou would never see the sparkling sapphire eyes ever again.

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A/N: Whew…My rusty brain is finally working again.

If you're wondering where the Kurayamis have gone to, you'll have to wait for the next chapter.

And…if this one seemed really sucky and OOC, that's to be expected. I've only watched one Hitsugaya-centric video and that would be the latest DiamondDust Rebellion trailer. I've never seen him so depressed and so pained before. It makes me empathize with him, even though I'm not sure what's going on. But I know…it must be horrible. Bloody horrible. Damned bloody freakin' horrible if it would make Hitsugaya so depressed.

Anywayz, here's the preview:

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…_Koori?"_

"_You're so naïve, Toushirou-kun. It's not Koori. Not yours anymore. Koori belongs to me now."_

"_Damn you, Aizen!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Mommy, where did Daddy go?"_

"_Your father has gone on a very long business trip, Toushirou."_

"_Why is it so long? It's b__een four years."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Kage, Toushirou's in trouble!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I told you you're not allowed to use your shikai, Kage."_

"_You're not the boss of me, Merenaito. Toushirou needs help! Can't you see that?"_

"_And he'll do just fine without your help."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_W__hy won't you let me? It's not fair, Meru! Stop acting like as if you're our replacement mother! Stop telling me when and when not to use my zanpakutou! I know fully well the consequences that will befall on me, but I can't risk letting Toushirou getting himself killed out there! Why. Won't. You. Let me?!"_

"_Because I can't lose you again, Kage! I don't want to lose you ever again, you hear me?!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Next few chapters will be more on the pasts of Hitsugaya and the Kurayamis when they were humans, and each chapter will be like through their perspective so it's pretty much the same thing with more development in every chapter. I hope you don't mind.


	21. 二十一　にじゅういち

Author's Note: Major corrections made to make things as accurate as possible. Hueco Mundo is spelled with a 'u'; my mistake for spelling it with an 'o'. Soifon is supposed to be written as one word, and not as Soi Fong. The zanpakutou release command for Koori's Fuyu no Hana is changed from 'fuyu ni sakimasu' to 'fuyu ni sake'. It's more accurate to say it in that way; thanks to all those reviewers who corrected me!

Disclaimer: Read previous chapter.

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Chapter 21 – Hitsugaya's Past, Losing Koori

The only thing his eyes could lock their vision onto was the blinding light that was so bright that it felt like as if he was staring straight at the sun on the hottest day of summer during noon. He thought he was going to be Tousen the Second; another blind ex-captain Soul Society would ever live to see. However, there was no such thing as being blinded by some mere light which was just exceptionally bright and stinging to the eyes. All he needed to do was to close his eyes and everything would be ok…right?

No…Everything would not be ok. He knew that right from the start. 'Ok' never existed in the dictionary of Hitsugaya Toushirou. Since when would things be ok when it was obvious they weren't? Things seemed horrible this time round; devastating, even. He was going to lose another valuable friend to the enemy, a friend so valuable he never knew even existed from deep within his soul since he was born and had always been inside of him ever since, despite knowing that he was a loner through and through, with no friends at all when he was alive. Had it always been like that? He thought his unique white hair was the reason why he never had any friends when he was alive, but maybe it was just because people already found him strange from the start. After all, would you call a four-year-old boy who could see the undead normal?

"_Mommy, who is that?"_

Aw, crap. Not now.

"_Who is who, son?"_

"_That little girl over there with the weird chain dangling from her chest."_

Of all times…why must his memories resurface _**now**_?!

"_And what's that big ugly monster over there? Is it going to kill her? It's going straight for her, Mommy. Where are her parents? Shouldn't they be protecting her?"_

"_Toushirou…"_

"_I pity the poor girl. She has such irresponsible parents for leaving her alone like that. Why aren't they protecting her?! Shouldn't parents protect their children?! Mommy, say something!"_

It had been more than a decade since he remembered his past. Paperwork and responsibilities of being a captain had filled his mind with so many troubles that he found it unnecessary to cling onto the past, but…damn, why now?!

"_Toushirou, come here to Mommy and close your eyes. We're getting away from here…"_

"_Mommy, why aren't we going to do anything to save her?!"_

"_Just listen to Mommy and don't look back."_

"_But why no-M-M-MOMMY!"_

"_I told you not to look back, didn't I?! When we get home, you're going straight to the sink to wash everything you saw out of your eyes!"_

Hitsugaya closed his eyes and covered them with both of his hands. And it wasn't because of the blinding light. The memory of seeing the soul of a girl being eaten up by that vicious hollow…the blood, the dripping blood…the bones, the horrible screech of the cracking bones…the scream, the helpless scream…All of it formed the familiar bloody image in his head and as the light dimmed down, he couldn't help massaging one side of his temples. Dammit. He must _**not **_let distractions such as old buried memories from long ago affect him in battle. That was so…unbecoming of a captain like him. Scratch that. It was ex-captain. Hitsugaya dared to open his eyes, trying to get the bloody memory out of his head, and the sight was unbelievably shocking, even for him. Teal eyes glanced towards his left where the door was. Ichigo was gaping at the sight and Orihime was cowardly hiding behind him. Hitsugaya narrowed his eyes to slits. Aizen…What the hell did he do now?

Why the hell was Koori standing right next to him, looking perfectly fine other than the dull, blank blue eyes and the…gaping hole in his chest…?

...So maybe he _**wasn't **_fine at all. Koori looked too much like a hollow, seeing that the whites of his eyes had turned ebony black and that the ice blue pupils resembled that of a hollow's. The gaping hole only made the answer all too obvious, but strange enough, two dainty wings of ice had sprouted from his back, and they were flapping. Ice cold mist surrounded his wings as they flapped so slowly, so…eerily. Koori's hollow and vacant eyes boring into Hitsugaya's own contrarily did not help ease the tension hung thickly in the atmosphere at all. And…was that a chunk of ice on Koori's face?

"…Koori?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. That was when he noticed that the temperature of the room seemed to be much lower than it was before. He could practically see the puff of cold vapor coming out of his mouth as he spoke.

Aizen smiled at him. "You're so naïve, Toushirou-kun." Hitsugaya glared at him. "It's not Koori. Not yours anymore. Koori belongs to me now."

Shock and despair was written all over his face as Koori reacted on the word 'now' and edged closer to Aizen before holding onto his hand solemnly. Hitsugaya's reiatsu flared up. "Damn you, Aizen!" Hitsugaya shunpo-skated towards Aizen, Hyourinmaru thrust in front of him to get a good stab but Koori was faster, seeing that he was nearer to Aizen. Not letting go of his hand like as if Koori were Aizen's biological child, Koori used his free hand to draw Fuyu no Hana from her sheath and blocked Hitsugaya's attack.

"As you can see, Toushirou-kun, Koori is willing to serve me loyally," Aizen spoke tauntingly, his lips forming a sadistic smile showing his teeth.

"Toushirou, do you need my-?" Ichigo stopped in mid-sentence when Hitsugaya turned to face him, narrowed eyes expressing the need for Ichigo to bring Orihime away right this instant. Ichigo opened his mouth to protest, fully understanding Hitsugaya's intention, but Hitsugaya just glared at him like as if glaring was a sort of language the two used to communicate with each other. Sighing in defeat, Ichigo sheathed Zangetsu and pulled Orihime away. He was going to look for the girls.

"Now, Aizen…What the hell did you do to him?!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_The petite boy with the physical stature of a standard four-year-old leaned over the windowsill as he stood on his tip-toes on the edge of the sofa. His mother was not far from the living room where he was in; she was busy fixing his favorite curry-in-ice soup in the kitchen, stirring the large soup spoon in regular circles (A/N: I made the soup up). Glancing at the clock, she was startled at the lateness of the day. "Toushirou! Why aren't you going to take your bath yet? It's quarter past seven!" Her son didn't make any action. He just continued leaning over the windowsill. "Toushirou!"_

"…_Mommy, where did Daddy go?" the innocent child asked, not taking his eyes off the snowflakes drifting from the skies outside._

_Haruna stopped stirring and Hitsugaya heard the clang of the metal spoon striking against the edge of the large pot. Not even flinching at the usual sound, Hitsugaya awaited an answer. The __**expected **__answer, obviously. The business trip one. "Your father has gone on a very long business trip, Toushirou."_

_Ah, see? He knew it. It was the same answer every time he asked that question and he was so used to it that there was no need to ask. But he wanted to find out more, being the curious and intuitive child he was, which was rare to find in a young child like him. "Why is it so long? It's been four years."_

_Again, the standard answer: "His boss decided it to be that long. There's nothing we can do if your father wishes to earn more money to support this family."_

"_It doesn't make sense. It's not like his boss will pay him more for working outside more, is it?" Hitsugaya asked, even though it was obvious what answer he would get._

"_Yes, Toushirou. You're young, so you still don't understand how business works these days. Trust me, your father will return when his boss allows him to."_

_Hitsugaya didn't know if he should trust his mother or not. She said that every year, after all._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Kicking the unknown Arrancar in the ---- when she saw him coming, Meian giggled as she hopped away and blew a whistle, cooing the Arrancar she just knocked his nuts on to stand up and fight. He did just that, only to fall into a nasty pitfall trap she set up. How the hell did she manage to fix that up within less than three seconds?! Unless she made use of the air pressure surrounding her as she compressed her vast spirit energy into her feet as she hopped away…No matter what she did, it was quite a smart cover-up to be able to trap him like that. Meian dusted her hands as she saw another Arrancar heading in her direction. She sighed and plainly punched the Arrancar in the stomach, stopping him in his tracks before she gave him a good kick on the stomach, dealing double damage and knocking him backwards, crashing him into the wall and making a huge dent.

Kage's frown carved deeper into her features as she stood there and folded her arms, watching Merenaito break the masks off the Arrancars one by one, and with each passing one, the pool of blood surrounding her just grew larger and larger till Kage could smell the rusty fluid. Merenaito stabbed, chopped and slashed at all the Arrancars coming in her direction. All Kage could do was send the ones heading in hers flying with a simple shot of Byakurai. It wasn't until she watched her sisters finish off all the Arrancars in Las Noches did she finally find the time to demand an explanation from Merenaito. "Oh, right, go ahead and leave me out of the fun from getting rid of the Arrancars to prevent them from stopping Toushirou. Go and be a killjoy and earn billions from it; I don't care!"

Merenaito sighed, "What is it now, Kage?"

"_**You're **_asking _**me **_that? Who was the one who asked me to stand here like some dumb ol' statue waiting for the inevitable to happen? Who was the one who strictly prohibited me from taking part in the fights? Hmm?" Kage retorted icily, putting her hands on her hips. "I know you're trying to protect me, Meru, but this is going way too far!"

"Look, you can still use your kidou. I'm just banning you from the usage of your zanpakutou. You know where it'll take you," Merenaito calmly replied.

"Yeah, but still…"

"Kage!" Meian's voice snapped both of them from their argument as they turned to face their younger sister who was standing next to a panting Ichigo. "Kage, Toushirou's in trouble!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Aizen Sousuke merely smirked contentedly at Hitsugaya's question. Hissing under his breath, the white-haired prodigy was trying to push Koori away from Aizen, but the hypnotized child wouldn't budge. "Well, Toushirou-kun, do you really want to know?" Noticing the infamous icy cold death glare from the young ex-captain, Aizen's smirk grew wider and he continued, "What makes you think I'll let you in on my secrets of success?"

"Just tell me what the hell you did to him, you bastard! I need to know so all the more I have another reason to kill you on the spot!" Hitsugaya demanded, his flaring reiatsu causing frost to form on Aizen's body.

Aizen brushed the frost off coolly before snapping his fingers and literally sitting back to enjoy the show. Koori dragged the blade of his zanpakutou down so quickly that sparks formed from the fierce pressure of the impact between the two ice zanpakutous. Hitsugaya nearly stumbled forward from the sudden loss of exerting the force against Koori's blade only to find the hollow-like guardian kick him from behind and step on his back with his foot with Fuyu no Hana's blade to his neck, ready to kill. Hitsugaya tried to get up despite knowing that his futile attempts would only cause the blade to sink deeper into his skin and injure his blood vessels. Blood mixed with frost began to ooze out and trickle down the pale blade, dripping onto the frozen floor. Aizen clapped his hands in amusement and Hitsugaya could only glare at the ground, his breathing shortened by the pressure being exerted against his neck. Should he tilt his head, even a little, it would most probably be the end of his esophagus.

"So tell me, Toushirou-kun, do you still want to know?"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Mommy, tell me, I wanna know."_

_His mother could only smile and run her hand through his soft, fluffy marshmallow hair before she embraced him in a hug. "There's nothing to tell you, my sweetie."_

"_No, Mommy. I know you're hiding something from me. I just know it!" Hitsugaya protested as he shifted uneasily in Haruna's grasp._

"_What makes you think so, little Toushirou-chan?" she teased, brushing a finger against his puffy little face._

"_My intuition tells me so!"_

"_Well, your intuition is wrong, so get some sleep for the big day tomorrow."_

"…_Mommy, you know I hate Christmas week," Hitsugaya stubbornly made his stand, folding his arms. "Which means, I hate my birthday."_

"_I know you hate your birthday, sweetie," Haruna replied in the same chirpy tone from before; it was like she wasn't paying attention._

"_Mom, would you pay attention for once?!" he exclaimed._

"_Ok, ok, what do you want, Toushirou?"_

"_I want you to tell me exactly where Daddy went! I want the truth, and nothing else!" he demanded in a huff. "Or else I'll hate him for life for leaving us to fend for ourselves!"_

_She grabbed him by the shoulders, startling him a little. "No you can't hate your father for leaving us, Toushirou," she spoke firmly, her eyes boring into his._

"_And why not?" he retorted icily with a cocked eyebrow. His plan was going to get his mother to confess; he just knew it would._

_To his expectations, she sighed and replied softly, "Because…I don't want you to hate your father for being a shinigami."_

_Both of Hitsugaya's eyebrows were raised now, and they blended with his white hair so well it looked like as if he had no eyebrows at all. "He's a what?!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"No, Kage."

"Let me go, Merenaito," Kage argued coldly, pulling her arm and trying to tug it out from her older sister's tight grasp.

"I said no." Merenaito sounded firm in her decision. "I told you you're not allowed to use your shikai, Kage."

"You're not the boss of me, Merenaito." Kage turned around to face her sister, her eyes glowing dangerously with anger. "Toushirou needs help! Can't you see that?"

"And he'll do just fine without your help," Merenaito replied, hoping that it would end like that. But knowing Kage, it most definitely would end up in a very heated debate. Knowing Kage, she would throw a tantrum and raise her reiatsu to the maximum, making everyone sink to their knees unless they raised their reiatsu to match or overcome hers. Knowing Kage, she'd get pissed, really pissed, and not talk to anyone about the matter for most likely the rest of the week. Knowing Kage, she would protest like there was no tomorrow, and knowing Kage, she was the second most childish of all the three of them.

But not knowing Kage, she of course didn't expect her sister to draw her sword from its sheath and swing it downwards only to meet with Merenaito's. Meian covered her mouth as she gasped while Ichigo's and Orihime's eyes widened at Kage's sudden action. Merenaito, however, seemed indifferent. "Why won't you let me? It's not fair, Meru!" Kage protested, raising her blade before bringing it down again. "Stop acting like as if you're our replacement mother! Stop telling me when and when not to use my zanpakutou! I know fully well the consequences that will befall on me, but I can't risk letting Toushirou getting himself killed out there! Why. Won't. You. Let me?!" With every word of the last sentence she spoke through gritted teeth, Kage brought up her zanpakutou and clashed against Merenaito's, sending sparks flying around.

Merenaito couldn't take it. Kage was venting her anger on her. No; Kage _**wasn't**_ venting her anger on her. She was venting someone else's. Someone whom no one would ever welcome. "Because I can't lose you again, Kage! I don't want to lose you ever again, you hear me?!" Merenaito exclaimed, losing all her cool. The eerie glow in Kage's eyes dimmed as the middle child stared at Merenaito who was panting from her sudden outburst. "Don't you understand, Mezu? I don't want anything to happen to you. Not like those years ago. I am not committing the same mistake ever again."

"M-Meru…I…" Kage was at a loss for words at that point as she sheathed her sword, not taking her eyes off her older sister. Looking away at the ground as the cool breeze in the room, caused by an abnormal rise in reiatsu level, blew against her face, her hair flew along with it. "I…I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

Merenaito's eyes softened. "I know, Kage. More than you think I do."

When Merenaito held Kage's hands with hers, Kage clenched her fists and moved further away from Merenaito, letting her hands free from Merenaito's grasp. "And it would do you better if you don't know from the start."

Watching the back view of her sister walking in the direction of which Ichigo came from to look for her childhood friend, Merenaito whispered, "Oh, Kage…"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Hitsugaya hissed as he strained to focus his ice cold reiatsu to manifest on Koori's feet. Frost began to form on the white-haired boy's tiny toes as he withdrew his feet in surprise, giving Hitsugaya the chance to shunpo-skate away and reappear behind Koori, bringing the blade of Hyourinmaru down, only to meet with Fuyu no Hana speedily. Sparks began to fly from the impact and a burst of reiatsu caused the small wisp of Hitsugaya's hair to fly around wildly. It's a wonder how he always manages to fight without that strip of hair bothering him during battle. "It's useless, Toushirou-kun." Hitsugaya stole a furious glance at the sadist as he stepped closer to them. Aizen put a hand on Koori's shoulder, and the latter didn't flinch. "No matter how hard you try, Koori will surpass you in every aspect. Isn't that right, Koori?" Aizen asked with a grin on his face.

"Yes, Aizen-sama." Hitsugaya's eyes widened. There was no way in hell could he ever imagine Koori ever saying that, let alone hearing it for real. What did Aizen _**do **_to him?!

"I'm so sorry things have to turn out this way, Toushirou-kun," Aizen falsely apologized, earning himself a cold glare from the said ex-captain. "But since you're going to die along with Soul Society anyway, I might as well let you bring the secret to your next life."

With that, Aizen snapped his fingers and Koori obeyed his command. He sheathed Fuyu no Hana stoically, before those emotionless, unblinking eyes finally closed, collapsing in Aizen's arms around him. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, refused to withdraw his sword and Koori passing out only added fuel to his burning anger. "So what did you do to him, _teme_? I'll kill you if you don't tell me!"

Aizen could only smile as he carried Koori bridal-style, which seemed all too wrong for a sadist like him to take that much interest in someone like that. "Strong threats as always, Toushirou-kun. You'll never learn, will you?"

Watching Aizen run his hand over Koori's fluffy hair, Hitsugaya was only taunted to threaten even further, "You'd better tell me or else I'll encase you in an ice cage and shatter you over and over again!"

The sadist seemed – what word was it again? – amused by Hitsugaya's angered actions, despite the fact that he had truly underestimated the young genius and the thing was, he knew how powerful Hitsugaya had gotten over the past few months. However, instead of feeling frightened which would be unbecoming of the fearless leader of the Arrancars, he decided to…make Hitsugaya have a taste of his own medicine by using his trusted comrade against him. It was thrilling, even. Of course he wouldn't tell Hitsugaya all that; the child only wanted to hear the _**best **_part. "It's simple, Toushirou-kun. You should've figured out by now that the Hougyoku is the core of Koori's power, since it was created from the power of the memories he held in his past life. With every Arrancar I made from the Hougyoku's power, Koori-kun would regain a small bit of his memories as the Hougyoku experiences regular power leaks whenever I use it. The power leaks out, the memories leak out. And like how Koori-kun seeks his memories, his memories seek him."

The growing smile on Aizen's face did not bode well. Since when did Aizen Sousuke bode well anyways? "The Hougyoku reacts to a reiatsu twice of that of an average captain's, and that's just the minimum requirement; precisely because of that, the power of the Hougyoku was limited. To activate Hougyoku's full power, the owner of the memories stored within it would have to be used together with the Hougyoku. To my surprise…Koori-kun was the one I've been looking for. It was a shock, really. I thought it was you, seeing that you have already achieved bankai at such a young age and that you would have a much brighter future ahead of you. But it just turned out to be your dear friend instead. Life is full of surprises, isn't it, Toushirou-kun?"

Hitsugaya glanced at the unconscious Koori in Aizen's arms. There was still something he didn't fully comprehend. "…Even so, it doesn't make sense how Koori has to take orders from you now, you f-ing bastard."

Aizen ignored the insult hurled at him and actually bothered to explain, "Ah, that is the most exciting part of my discovery. In the first place, as the Hougyoku is under my direct control, it would indirectly mean that I have been controlling Koori-kun's mind all this while. It wasn't direct control, as I have discovered, but the merging of the Hougyoku and Koori-kun together would put Koori-kun under my direct control. The Koori you know now is actually the Hougyoku instead. It seems that the sudden rush of overflowing memories has left Koori-kun with little willpower to resist; it's such a shame that I can't control you in the same way, Toushirou-kun."

Hitsugaya's eyes flashed a bright ice blue as he raised his reiatsu to near maximum. He had the strongest of urges to just say the magic word 'bankai' and plainly freeze the bastard to death, but it wasn't safe to pull off bankai as there was no way Koori would be around to bring out the full power he needed to even land a satisfying hit. Alternatively, he could use Koori's zanpakutou against him, but he doubted even Fuyu no Hana was on his side now, seeing that her wielder was under the direct control of Aizen the bastard. There was no time to check his inner world to dig out more information; Hyourinmaru was nudging at the back of his mind that his attempts to attack would be futile unless a careful strategy could be planned out at the last minute. Hitsugaya curiously and cautiously sent a mental note back to Hyourinmaru, asking if Fuyu no Hana was there, but the dragon didn't reply. Could his silence be a no? It wasn't like the dragon to keep quiet during an important battle like this.

Hitsugaya had no other alternative. "Aizen, I'm going to kill you!" he declared as he shunpo-skated over towards Aizen once more.

"I told you, Toushirou-kun, it's useless." Aizen snapped his fingers. Koori's eyes opened at once at the sound of the snap, and he unsheathed Fuyu no Hana, bringing it in front of him to protect himself and his master. "Kill him for me, my sweet child. He is a threat to us," Aizen whispered in Koori's ear before sitting back and enjoying the show once more.

"_Hai, _Aizen-sama." Koori shunpo-ed away from Hitsugaya, but Hitsugaya wasn't going to fall for the same trick again. Spinning around, he guarded himself from Koori's charging attack with the blade of Hyourinmaru. "Fuyu ni sake…" Hitsugaya's eyes widened. No…No, dammit, Koori was going to resort to that?! "…Fuyu no Hana."

Hitsugaya jumped out of the way as the released pure white zanpakutou took the sealed zanpakutou's place as the water vapor in the atmosphere condensed greatly, forming adrift snow. The temperature in the room fell to a good negative 15 degrees Celsius and some machinery started to freeze up. Koori held Fuyu no Hana horizontally as the somewhat dull zanpakutou emitted mist. Hitsugaya couldn't help arching an eyebrow at the sudden dullness of the once bright and pure Fuyu no Hana. Could Fuyu no Hana's spirit actually be…?

"Fuyu no Yuki," Koori muttered the shikai ability, activating a strong blast of snow from the flower-like guard. Hitsugaya shielded himself from the Hakuren-like attack, feeling the blast of the snow and wind against his face. The winds died down, and Hitsugaya took a closer look at Hyourinmaru's end result. It was frozen solid, from the hilt to tip of the blade. His fingers, wrapped tightly around the hilt, were encased in ice as well. It was major déjà vu for the young white-haired prodigy; it felt so much like his bankai. He didn't know if Koori was actually trying to let Hitsugaya gain the upper hand or Koori was planning to freeze _**him **_instead.

Things just weren't going well for the white-haired ex-captain.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_It was the turning point of Hitsugaya Toushirou's life. Or death, as he saw it._

_It all happened so quickly; first it was seeing his mother running away from the hideous monsters with holes in their chests. He was taking a breather out in the house gardens when his mother suddenly ran up to him and grabbed him by the arm, fleeing from those dinosaurs with huge and moldy feet which never failed to make the awful stomping sounds as they chased after mother and son. Hitsugaya still didn't know what was going on. In the first place, he noticed that other people couldn't see what he could, and then he discovered that his father was a shinigami, whatever the hell that was. Trust his mother to be so secretive twenty-four seven; it pissed him off. And he was only __**four years old**_

_That was when he saw a weird human. The human had a mask covering his face and the same hole in his chest. Hitsugaya had second thoughts about asking the human to help, but there was a high chance that the human was of the same kind of those monsters and was actually chasing him and his mother as well. It wouldn't be wise to speak with strangers. He and his mother just continued running and running till the weird human came in front of him, and the rest of the monsters spread themselves out and surrounded them. Before he knew anything, the human shot a giant red beam (that would normally give kids like him seizures) and then…nothing._

"_Hello…"_

_A voice, whispering to him…was it?_

"_Hello, Toushirou. I'm so glad I'm able to have this chance to meet you for the very first time."_

_His vision started to get into focus. Now it was a soothing bright sunflower yellow light, and a shadowy figure in front of him. Who could it be…?_

_Perhaps the figure had seen him back away in fear. "Do not worry. Here, take this sword, and you shall be safe."_

_The sword…of a light blue hilt, of a four-sided star-shaped guard, of a long blade, of a light blue sheath…It seemed so mesmerizing…_

"_There we go. That wasn't so bad, was it?"_

_He didn't know, but he must've had grabbed the hilt of the sword given to him. It felt so…so nice to have the weight of the sword on his hand. He felt stronger, and felt much better than before. His mind started to get a little less fuzzy and his vision became a lot clearer. Now he could see a boy. A boy about his age, if not, younger…but what's this…? The boy looked…just like him!_

"_It is time to go now, Toushirou. But it's ok. We'll see each other again someday."_

"…_Promise?"_

_The boy clad in the ice blue kimono gave him a comforting smile before bringing out his own sword. "Promise."_

_A light tap against his forehead and Hitsugaya could see nor hear no more._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_That sword…It's so pretty…The blade is just right…and the guard gives one a sense of solitude…the hilt…the hilt…I…I love white, after all…"_

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Fuyu no Yuki – the second ability revealed for Koori's zanpakutou, Fuyu no Hana, Fuyu no Yuki means Winter Snow or Snow of Winter. It is one of the most beautiful techniques Fuyu no Hana has in store for us, and it looks a lot like Rukia's Sode no Shirayuki's Hakuren. The only difference is that whatever flowers supposed to bloom in winter will automatically bloom upon the activation of this ability, and the flowers themselves will spurt out snow like a fountain.

A/N: Hitsu seemed OOC, don'cha think so? Arghs…I have got to re-watch him in action…

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Kage, you can't. You just can't."_

"_I don't care, Merenaito. You can't stop me."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Why…? Why are you doing this…? Mother…"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_Don't you know that the more you hold her back, the more you're going to expose her to danger?"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**


	22. 二十二　にじゅうに

Author's Note: Updates will be going on very slowly, mainly because the entire chapter 24 will be a major spoiler for later parts of the prequel, The One, which isn't complete yet. (Note to self; always finish prequels before starting on middle story when it comes to trilogies) Anyway, once chapter 23 is posted, this story will be on a short hiatus. Don't worry, it won't be as dramatically long as other fics, because it'll be on hiatus until The One is complete, which wouldn't take that long. Maybe just a few more months or so. Please wait patiently. I'm trying my best to bring you updates! Thank you!

A side warning: This chapter and the next chapter will mainly be focusing on the three Kurayamis, my OCs, so if you don't like them, you can choose not to read. I'm not forcing anyone to like them.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapters. It's actually very obvious about what I own and what I don't own.

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Chapter 22 – As Dark as Darkness Can Be

_It all happened far too quickly for her mind to register exactly what was going on._

_All she could remember was sleeping on the floor with no blanket to keep her warm, and no soft pillow under her head to keep her comfy. No, it was just her and the floor, as if they depended on each other in order to live. Well, at least that was in Kage's case. She was a very light sleeper at night, but when it came to daytime, she would do anything just to get a good day's sleep. But of course, with a timid bastard who just so happened to marry a demon in disguise, she knew that if she ever wanted a good sleep would require for her to stay in permanent and everlasting sleep. And it appeared that she would get her sleep in due time._

_Being a light sleeper, she could feel a cold touch sinking into her skin when her mother grabbed her wrists and pulled her up before dragging her on the ground. She didn't want her to realize that she was awake all this damned time, otherwise she would just be punished for bad behavior once again. Her feet were sliding across the smooth tiles of the house, and the next thing she knew, something sharp was trickling under her legs, drawing blood as she continued to get herself dragged to somewhere she didn't want to know. When the cold touch left her, she heard the distant footsteps of her calm and cold mother, and when the footsteps could not be heard, she knew that she was gone and that it was safe to awaken._

_Bloodshot diamond eyes caught sight of a lonely roadside with no lights and no cars. It was like she was abandoned in a country she never knew existed, otherwise only in tragic tales in storybooks that she read and, to a point, understood completely for a three-year-old child like her. Bringing her knees to her chest, Kage let the tears fall. She was lonely. Thoughts about how her sisters could be doing filled her dreaded mind. Would they be abandoned too? Or would they die by their cruel mother's hands? Either way…they knew that it was soon going to be the end of them. Kage…was sleepy. She was so sleepy._

_The distant cry that sounded empty yet pained kept her awake like an alarm clock, but as soon as it died down, her heavy eyelids began to close. Her vision blurred when she saw something that looked like a porcelain mask in front of her, and huge giant-like claws that caressed her tiny little frame, squeezing the life out of her. A deep chuckle, and that was all she heard before she could see glistening tyrannosaurus-like teeth coming down towards her at lightning speed._

_But she felt no pain._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

There it was.

A sudden spike in the reiatsu she knew belonged to someone she had known for a very long time now.

She had been…different, so as to say, from other spiritual beings. Yes, she was a shinigami, through and through, but at the same time, she wasn't. No, she wasn't a hollow either. In fact, she had no idea what she was. She was neither shinigami nor hollow; neither vaizard nor arrancar. There has always been a question of who we are for we are what we are, but in this case, Kurayami Mezurashii Kage was just plain confused. She knew; she was aware right from the beginning that she was different. She knew herself more than others knew her, including her sisters. Sometimes she wondered if she truly existed in the first place. And in the midst of that 'sometimes', she would think of herself as a shadow. A rare and unusual shadow, different from all the rest. The irony…she'd be living up to her name literally.

And precisely because she was different, she had some abilities that others would take a miracle to acquire. That included her exceptionally powerful kidou, and the ability to track reiatsu far greater than others. There were more, much more, but even she herself didn't know what else that made her different from the rest. Her kidou, void of the incantation and the mentioning of the name, would already be as powerful as an ordinary shinigami's kidou _**with **_the name and the incantation. People could only imagine just how disastrous it would be if she were to recite the incantation with the name; already, with the name itself, it would be four times as powerful as the normal kidou with the name and incantation. Others label her exceptional kidou skills as either prodigally inherited, or just plain lucky.

As for her ability to track reiatsu…Well, she's doing it right now.

Kage dashed through the hallways leading to where Aizen should be as she followed an unusually worried strawberry and his rescued friend, not wanting to look behind to check if her sisters were on her side this time round. She didn't even need to see if they were, because their reiatsu – though masked perfectly – could be sensed by her. And they sure as hell were following her. The rushing footsteps echoed, the sound waves from the impact of the feet to the ground bouncing off the walls by their sides. The reiatsu was getting much thicker than before, Kage mused to herself as she ran.

"_Three different kinds of reiatsu in a room…" the shadowy girl noted to herself mentally, as if she were reading computerized data. "The room should be Aizen's experimentation room. Small pieces of reiatsu of all kinds are in there…I can just feel them. Only three distinct ones…Tou-chan is fighting…Koori-chan?! But…it can't be…can it? Aizen's reiatsu is constantly released at a percentage of ten percent, and now it's about thirty percent…Tou-chan's is currently about sixty percent and Koori-chan's is about the same. No, wait…He's not even releasing his reiatsu. What I'm sensing isn't Koori-kun's…But just what exactly is it, then?"_

Kage narrowed her eyes to slits as she was about to reach their destination. She furrowed her brows in deep concentration to figure out exactly what reiatsu she was sensing, and why it felt so much like Koori's when at the same time, it wasn't. True enough; it was much too hollow-like. _**Too **_hollow-like, if you asked her. The reiatsu she was sensing was far darker than any hollow's, vaizard's or arrancar's. It was like as if Koori had crossed the boundaries connecting Hueco Mundo to the blackest pits of hell and absorbed the reiatsu straight from there. Koori wasn't releasing the reiatsu; something or someone was possessing him and releasing its own reiatsu instead. Just that…why the reiatsu felt so much like Koori was beyond her, unless…unless it was…!

Kage suppressed a gasp as she looked up, her eyes appearing to be frozen as she caught sight of what was transpiring before her. "…The Hougyoku?"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_**SLAP**_

_The small brunette in two dainty pigtails fell to the ground with a sickening thud, her cheek badly bruised with tinges of blue and black, and her frightened opal-blue eyes shut tight as she felt the side of her forehead colliding against the tiled floor. She held back the stinging salty tears in her eyes as she felt something liquid-like trickling down her cheek. She was young and had no idea what it was until she finally gained the courage to open her eyes. The dark crimson fluid laid beside her. Before she could say anything, a strong tug at her hair pulled her back up to her feet. She was weak and frail after all the torturing and it seemed that she was going to get some more._

_She was right._

_Meian fell once more, not able to muster any bit of strength left within her, but instead of falling against the ground, her abusive bitch of a mother grabbed her before she did. No, she was __**not **__an angel in disguise; don't make Meian vomit anymore blood. She was already going to faint from blood loss. In the corner of her eyes, there was an evil smirk before she saw a hint of wooden brown and slumped to the ground. She couldn't beg her sisters to help her out; Merenaito had been tied up with tightly knotted ropes, and Kage had been long abandoned by their bitchy mother. They didn't want to know if she was dead or alive. They were afraid of the truth, and Kage, they knew, was the reflection of the truth._

_And if the truth were to die, the reflection would die away as well._

_So…Kage was right all along…in their rare heart-to-heart discussions about what the future would hold for them…Kage predicted that they would all never escape death, and that it would be the end of them before they would even turn four. And she was right._

_Meian committed the forbidden taboo in front of her mother. She cried. Tears that swelled up in her eyes spilled out like hot tea, and she buried her face in her palms, letting the tears mixed with blood fall. Her mother yelled something incoherent, but to Meian, it sounded like as if she had just called her own daughter a weak, insolent bitch or bastress or something similar to that. Either way, Meian didn't care. All she wanted was to join her beloved sisters in death. She was sure, she was completely sure, that Kage didn't survive. After all…she had been gone for five months. Other times Mother would play the abandoned island game with them – more like Kage – Kage would always find a way to come home, but not without cuts and bruises and tattered clothes with dried blood. But those few months ago, there were several occasions whereby Meian wanted to play with her older sister but Mother forbade her from entering the shadow's room. That time, Kage was starved for one entire week. Meian, though normally the most optimistic of the fraternal triplets, had no idea that Kage survived that obstacle, but failed to survive the next._

_Soon, the rain of broken glass fell upon the youngest of the lot as the glass pieces from broken sake bottles dug into her skin, piercing right through it. Blood, blood, and more blood oozed out. She knew that her mother had always been abusive, but never to the point of smashing her sake bottles against her own daughter's body, and rushing to the kitchen to grab the sharpest knife she could find. And before Meian blacked out, she could see her timid submissive father hide Merenaito in a sack and carrying her out to who-knew-where, and the bright sparkle from the blade of the kitchen knife before the cutlery dove straight in, and kissed that delicate stomach of hers._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

She was always one to smile, but this was no time to be smiling.

She, too, always felt different from the others. From her sisters, from Tou-Tou, from everyone. Why was it that she remained small, yet powerful, was something that only she and her sisters knew. No, she was nothing like Kusajishi Yachiru. She was young, yes, and she appeared to be nearly a decade, in Soul Society's standard, younger than her sisters who were believed to be twins before, but the truth about the three of them being fraternal triplets shocked others beyond belief. It was believed that there were rare cases of twins and triplets in Soul Society whereby the siblings had to attack at the same time and release their zanpakutou at the exact same time for their full power to be unleashed, and since it was normally Merenaito who needed to resort to shikai the most, with Kage only relying on her kidou, and Meian, her pure brute strength, it was hard to believe that they were triplets. Siblings? That was easy to believe. But triplets?

A case study: Merenaito resorted to shikai when the time seemed to be just right. Kage was banned from using shikai; only the sisters themselves knew the reason behind that. But Meian herself found no need to use shikai at all. She preferred using her hands and feet to do the talking when it came to fighting strong and powerful opponents. Karate seemed to be her thing; why not fulfill that certain desire of hers? She was never interested in zanjutsu to begin with. She admitted it herself; she was not as good in zanjutsu as her sisters were. And that was when the mystery came in. If she never expressed her need to be stronger or even to be captain in the first place, why bother discovering her own zanpakutou's name when she wasn't good at zanjutsu, or even interested at all?

She got her captaincy through obtaining bankai, and so did her sisters, but why did she bother to materialize her zanpakutou's spirit when she displayed no interest in knowing anything about her zanpakutou at all?

Not even Meian herself knew the answer to that.

"Kage," Merenaito's voice snapped Meian out of her child-like daze as she watched yet another seemingly heated argument between her two elder sisters begin to unfold. "You can't. You just can't."

Meian mentally sighed at the back of her head, and her zanpakutou's spirit began to tame her. She hated to admit it, but she had grown fond of her zanpakutou over time, but why she ever bothered was something she would like to keep to herself and her zanpakutou. Well, to be more specific, it seemed that only her zanpakutou knew why. "I don't care, Merenaito. You can't stop me." Kage was really stubborn, Meian silently mused. And that was what differed her from Merenaito, otherwise they were really alike in so many ways.

_Why…? Why are you doing this…? Mother…_

At times, she would remember the sad times. At times, she would remember that during those sad times, Merenaito and Kage would be the ones doing the talking and the begging. At times, she noticed that ever since they came to Soul Society, the tables turned. Now it was the other way around. But Kage's stubborn streak never left her, and Merenaito's love for her sisters only grew with each passing day. All of this, Meian knew and observed, and this she would keep all to herself, until one day, a tiny sorrowful seed like her would soon sprout to a flower, the beautiful plant that would someday bring joy to others. Someday.

"Kana." Merenaito blinked at the sound of Meian's unusually soft and somewhat timid voice. Kage stared at her younger sister before looking to the ground. As Merenaito turned, her hand not leaving Kage's shoulder, she saw the rare sorrow mixed with happiness expressed in the youngest's eyes. Meian smiled sadly as she continued to speak, "We've been through times like this before, haven't we? And we always manage to pull through, even when Ka-chan (Kage) is near death." The usually hyper and enthusiastic girl was displaying traits of affection and sophistication as she walked over to Merenaito and placed a soothing hand on her shoulder. "Don't you know that the more you hold her back, the more you're going to expose her to danger? You and I know that more than anyone else in the world, Meru. We can't keep putting on this restraint on Kage. It'll only put her in more danger."

A confused strawberry and princess looked back and forth from sister to sister, from Kurayami to Kurayami, a bit baffled as to what was unfolding before them right there and then. Things that they did not understand were completely understood by the mystery sisters, and things that they understood were completely understood by the mystery sisters as well. There were things that they knew that others didn't know and they seemed to want to keep it at that. At least…third parties who would interfere with them would think this way. Meian's brows knitted together as she stared long and hard into Merenaito's cold unwavering eyes, awaiting a reply from the current head of the family.

Meian noticed that Kage had long begun trembling.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_A material that felt all too much like wool began prickling her skin, and it felt like as if it were a woolen scarf that had coiled itself around her and threatening to consume her entire soul and being. It was like suffocation but not as fatal, and wherever they were planning to take her to, she just had to get herself tossed into a gunnysack when her only sister left was desperately clinging onto her last strand of life within her, and she knew that the light of life would soon go away if she didn't do something. The fact that she was stuck in a bag of darkness and not being moved anywhere implied that her parents were busy abusing their youngest daughter – more like her mother – so she should have enough time…shouldn't she?_

_Alas, fate played a cruel trick of time on her._

_She was not one who would waste energy struggling against the tight and forceful binds which she and her sisters usually called curses that her parents placed on her. Kage was one who would struggle but give up when it seemed that all hopes had been dashed. Merenaito knew that that was one weak point of Kage's, as it had eventually led to her death. How did she know? She had long noticed the bloody body which she recognized belong to her sister that was lying across the streets. It was she, the caring elder Kurayami sister, who had given Kage a proper burial in the town cemetery and would always pay her respects to her sister's spirit whenever she had the chance, which was only one in a hundred percent._

_And because of her defiance, it had landed her in the current state she was in._

_Being in darkness for as long as she could remember, Merenaito was somewhat surprised to see the beams of light dawning upon her facial features once more. It wasn't long before she regained her vision after switching off the switch that activated her night vision, and she could easily recognize her location as a remote cliff near the high mountains that one would crack his neck just to have a peek at the amazing geographical mark. In front of her was her mother, licking her lips in amusement and revealing the vampire fangs that she had hidden for such a long time. Things happened too quick for Merenaito to realize exactly what was going on, but all she could feel was the force of the flowing air brushing against her small frame, her hair flying around wildly in all directions. The figure of her mother appeared to have shrunk as she felt herself falling…and falling._

_She was right all along._

_Her mother __**was **__a demon._

_But it wasn't like it was any more of a surprise to them. After all, where else did Merenaito and Meian get their vampirism from?_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Her cold, hard and all-neutralism-in-one eyes seemed to have travelled far into her youngest sister's as all she saw were blazing opal orbs, sparkling somewhat dangerously yet firmly. For once, Merenaito silently and melancholically noted, Meian was right. In a sense. Being the oldest, she had given herself the role of taking care of her sisters like as if they were her daughters. And being the oldest, she had yet to understand the world of younger sisters and what would go through their minds all this time. Her mind, already matured and all ready setting her mindset to be similar to that of a human woman's, would never comprehend the ways and means of (devilish) younger sisters sometimes, but other times she knew that they would someday be the ones who would correct you from wrong instead.

And that was what exactly made the sisters, though different in their own eccentricity, similar to one another.

Merenaito admitted, she had felt different from others before, but she didn't care. There were a lot of things in life and the afterlife that she decided not to care and waste bothering her emotions about, but she knew in her heart that someday she would start caring about what others would think of her. In fact, she had long started. On the contrary, being with her sisters and spending her entire lifetime with them distracted her in a sense from her own thoughts and subconsciously and unwittingly set goals into her mind, making her the most respected of the three sisters. Indeed, she might not be as skillful in hand-to-hand combat as compared to Meian, nor was she as superb in kidou as compared to Kage, but she had her own unique trait that made her sisters respect her.

That was not zanjutsu, but her aura.

It was not reiatsu either.

Neither of them knew exactly what it was, but it was something special that Merenaito seemed to emit. Heck, perhaps all eldest siblings emitted that special kind of aura of a kind that was unique to all elders in the siblings. No matter how irritating, annoying or loveable an older sibling could be, it was this special quality that would never fail to make the younger ones respect their oldest siblings. Merenaito's, however, was even more than just that kind of sibling love. You could call it surrogate motherly love; you could call it subconscious feelings; you could call it anything you wished. Because they themselves didn't know much about themselves either.

Merenaito turned to face Kage and sighed wearily. "Very well. I give you my consent." As Merenaito moved her hand away from Kage's shoulder and let it fall to her side, she flashed the middle child a rare smile and continued, "But only on one condition. We fight. Together." At the word 'fight', the obsidian (A/N: Remember, the name Merenaito refers to a black gem, a melanite to be more precise) grabbed the shadow's hands into her own as well as the contradictory's and added with her voice barely above a whisper, "…As siblings."

Kage held back a soft gasp that would soon escape her lips if she hadn't held it back, and smiled back. Her trembling stopped. "It would be my greatest pleasure, Meru, to fight alongside you and Meian once more."

Meian brightened, and flashed them all her usual everyday smile. "And hey, let's think about it! How long has it been since we last fought together?"

"And as one mind?" Merenaito continued.

"Or as one being?" Kage ended, her smile widening with every word. Ichigo and Orihime were still confused, by the way.

The thin, bony fingers curled themselves together, coiling themselves around each other, before all at once their heads shot up, the smiles dissipating into thin air as the sisters turned to face the closed room. Hands still gripping onto each other's tightly, they gave a loud battle cry together and jumped high into the air before stretching out their legs and forcing the door, which had comfortably and happily locked itself up, open.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A/N: If you're somehow interested in my OCs' zanpakutous, you're in luck, because in the next chapter, they will finally release their zanpakutous! Wow, we have really come a long way into this story, haven't we? Eh, I sound old o.O

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…_Is that a frozen Tou-chan I see?"_

"_To be more precise in your statement, Kage, it's his hand that's frozen solid right now."_

"_Mm…Yeah…Imagine the irony behind that."_

"…_Would you three please…stop dwelling in my embarrassment and tell me exactly what the hell are you all doing here?!"_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_To hell with that! Tou-chan, Hougyoku has completely taken over Koori-kun's mind! It'd be useless to try anything to snap him out of it!"_

"_And to carefully add on to that, if you ever wake Koori up before he does on his own, he'll never bring himself to give you his forgiveness."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"_I am but a lonely lunar gone unnoticed by the human eye…"_

"_I am but a reflection of the shadowy truth that no one else can see…"_

"_I am but a life form having the need to disperse the sorrow within me…"_

"_Can you help me achieve what I strive to achieve? Can you help me show myself that I am weak alone but strong when with you? Can you prove yourself worthy of knowing my name? If so, work together and become one in body, soul and mind, and speak of the name that has been flowing through along with your blood in your veins ever since you were born, and we shall purge forward…together. Together…always."_

**＜ブリーチ＞**


	23. 二十三　にじゅうさん

Author's Note: Ok, how long has it been since I last updated?! -whacks myself-

I changed a bit of their past in the academy. Initially, it was just supposed to be Hitsugaya and Hinamori who saw the girls in the library, and the reason why they disappeared was mainly because they ran out of the school campus when they weren't supposed to. But as you can see, I've made some changes due to the movie. For the second half of that (the running away part), it'll only be revealed in the sequel.

Disclaimer: Read previous chapter.

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Chapter 23 – Purge the Enemies with the Blades of Darkness

When they forced the doors opened, they thought that they had gone through a portal leading to the North Pole.

Iciness sunk deep into their bones, numbing them to a frozen position. Snow and ice were hurled in their direction, guided by the strong gusts of the blizzard winds. There was no way they could block their faces from getting covered with frost when their arms were practically stuck to their sides, unmoving, due to the immense reiatsu building up in the room. The plain of ice beneath their feet both soothed and annoyed them greatly. The coldness was something which they would describe as 'thrilling to experience', but now wasn't the good time to be enjoying the exposure to such wintry reiatsu that wasn't even near the benchmark of full release. What the hell.

Fists clenched by her sides, Kage closed her eyes and concentrated. Releasing a portion of her reiatsu, she shifted about in her position until she managed to gain full control over her movements and grabbed her sisters' wrists, bringing them out of the way of the Fuyu no Yuki attack launched by the robotic Koori just in the nick of time, otherwise they'd be suffocating under the thick snow by then. Aizen was smiling that I-am-the-almighty-Aizen sadistic smile, watching the 'interesting' fight unfold as it just got more and more interesting while more people got themselves involved.

Kage muttered a curse under her breath as she mustered up a bit of her reiryoku and formed a misty shield around her and her sisters before landing gracefully by a panting Hitsugaya's side, sharing the protective powers of her shadowy shield with him and blocking off all incoming attacks by the dull blade of Fuyu no Hana. With a relieved sigh, she let go of her sisters' hands and fell on her butt. With a raised eyebrow, she stared at the frozen arm of Hitsugaya's.

"…Is that a frozen Tou-chan I see?"

With a glare, said ex-captain of the 10th Division twitched.

"To be more precise in your statement, Kage," Merenaito spoke. "it's his hand that's frozen solid right now."

Meian grinned childishly. "Mm…yeah…Imagine the irony behind that."

He might have lost his captaincy, but he sure didn't lose his pride. And he wasn't going to ever let his pride get destroyed by three little devils of the opposite gender. Oh hell, no way. "…Would you three please…" A vein popped. "…stop dwelling in my embarrassment and tell me exactly what the hell are you all doing here?!"

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…_Ne…"_

"…"

"…_Ne…!"_

"…"

_Giving out a frustrated sigh, the two-ponytailed Meian pouted a little before she leaned over and moved closer to Kage's ear. "Ne, Kage-chan!"_

_With a popping vein, the short-haired Kage turned to face her, sending her a death glare. "What?" she demanded, voice low and waning. "Can't you see I'm __**reading **__here?"_

_Meian rolled her eyes. "Duh. That's why I called your spirit back from the land of books," she answered sarcastically. "I'm so bored…Why are we here in the first place?"_

"_Because your sister wants to have a bonding session with the books," Kage motioned to her left, pointing a thumb across her shoulder to a corner where a totally concentrated Merenaito was reading the book she had picked with gusto._

"_Hey, isn't she your sister too?"_

_Pause._

"_Yeah. Your point?"_

_The most bored out of the Kurayamis only sighed and rolled her eyes again. "Never mind. Anyway, what are you reading?"_

_Kage blinked at how quick the subjects had been changed, but later paid no mind to it and glued her eyes back to the kanji of the book. "Something about zanpakutous and zanjutsu."_

_Her younger sister stared at her like as if she had grown an extra limb. "Kage. You __**hate **__zanjutsu."_

"_So do you," came the calm reply._

"_But I'm not the one reading an entire book about it."_

_With a bored sigh, Kage spoke, trying to be as calm as she could, "Meian, I may be the only one in the entire class who is desperately trying to ask kidou out for a date…"_

**Giggle**

**Twitch**

**Smack**

"…_but that doesn't mean that I can't be an unfaithful boyfriend slash girlfriend," she continued, flipping to the next page. "And besides, it's about time we venture into the world of the other shinigami skills. We have to be well-versed in all four aspects if we want to be captains."_

"_Wait, who said anything about being captains? I definitely don't wanna be one! I'd be stuck with the paperwork all day!" Meian complained, folding her arms. "I thought we agreed that we won't ever have the desire to become captains!"_

_The diamond-eyed Kurayami gave her younger sister a little glance before her dazzling eyes rolled in all directions warily. The chair's legs dragged along the ground, breaking whatever daze Merenaito was in, and Kage went towards the door, closing and locking it to make things safer than they already were. Wary eyes darted across the room once more before Kage moved back towards her seat and settled down, giving Meian a hard, dark stare. The youngest of the three sisters blinked confusedly, unsure of what was going on with her elder sisters who seemed to have darkened stares for no apparent reason. Casting Merenaito a baffled glance, the oldest sighed._

"_Meian, you probably weren't aware, but…" Merenaito looked around, voice turning into an abrupt whisper towards the end. "…Yamamoto-soutaichou paid a visit."_

_Opal orbs rolled. "Yeah. So?"_

"_He paid a visit. To look for __**us**__," Merenaito added carefully, voice getting softer and softer with every word._

"_Huh? That sounds pretty lame, even for him…well, whatever for? We're not worth his time anyway."_

_Kage would've had slapped herself in the forehead at the comment but restrained herself and remained as calm as she could. Closing the book in her hands delicately, she rested her head against her arms on the table, giving a small yawn. "That's the problem, Meian." With another yawn, Kage continued, "He looked for us, because he wanted to do something."_

_Yawns seemed to be very contagious…_

_Meian wiped the tears from her eyes and sat down next to Kage, following her actions. "Do…? Do what…?"_

_Merenaito closed her awfully cool and calm golden orbs, resting her head against the shelf of books positioned behind her and closed the book in her hands, bringing it closer to her chest as if it were her precious treasure. "He wanted us…" she whispered, her sleepy mind dragging her in and out of consciousness. "He wanted us…to be captains…"_

_And then, they completely blacked out._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

Black energy crackled as the shield dissipated into waves of energy, the whiteness rushing towards the exposed foursome like an avalanche moving downhill towards a bunch of snow mountain hikers. With a sharp gasp that she could not contain, Meian grabbed the collars of the shinigami around her and dashed out of the way with shunpo. Moving into a corner, Kage pressed her palms against the frozen floor and formed a shield that was larger and duller than the one before it.

It might've had been an illusion, and yet it might not had been, but it seemed dangerously eerie to Kage how every attack from Fuyu no Hana's blade seemed to be getting more and more powerful…

Taking in a sharp intake of oxygen, she heaved a long sigh and slumped against the wall, bringing her legs towards her chest and burying her face into her knees, brows furrowing in concentration. Hitsugaya arched a silvery white eyebrow but it was gone as soon as it came before he stole a glance at the deranged Koori, and tossed Aizen a death glare. "I am going to kill Aizen for all that he's done…" he snarled under his breath as he tried to get the ice around his hand to defrost.

"Don't be rash, Toushirou-san," Merenaito commented quietly, keeping Kage's shield together by adding her own reiryoku into it.

"I'm _**not **_being rash, Merenaito," he retorted coldly, yet with a tinge of childishness to it as well. "But when this disappears again, I'll go over and separate Koori from the Hougyoku first. That's my objective of the moment…"

Kage's head snapped up, glaring at him with blazing diamond eyes which had begun glowing brightly. She narrowed her eyes and groaned a little. "To hell with that!" she yelled, but refusing to get up from her sitting position to give Hitsugaya a smack on the head for being a so-called genius. "Tou-chan, Hougyoku has completely taken over Koori-kun's mind! It'd be useless to try anything to snap him out of it!"

Before he could ask questions which he had a burning desire to ask, Merenaito cut in, "And to carefully add on to that, if you ever wake Koori up before he does on his own, he'll never bring himself to give you his forgiveness."

Hitsugaya arched another eyebrow. "Why?" he asked, tone of voice trying to sound as calm as possible. "He had no intention of following the _teme _Aizen, but he has to because of the Hougyoku. Don't I have to separate the two so that he'll be able to fight Aizen?"

Meian shook her head. "No. What we mean is…since the Hougyoku was created from the core of Koori-kun's memories…"

"…the merging of the two separate entities is a complete fusion of the mind…" Kage continued, trailing off for Merenaito to continue.

"…and thus, separation is impossible, unless you want to break Koori into half."

"There's a catch to it, though," Kage added with austerity in her voice. "The Hougyoku was created as Koori's memories bear most of his spiritual powers; they're so powerful that they can destroy the bridge connecting one's shinigami soul to its inner hidden hollow soul and merge the two separate but equal halves of the soul together, forming either arrancars or vaizards."

"With this power, merged back together with its original body and konpaku, Aizen thinks Koori can be the very weapon that will destroy all of Soul Society…" Meian trailed off.

"…but this is, however, not the case," Merenaito ended. "If Koori manages to acquire complete lack of concentration and willpower, the fusion between he and the Hougyoku will be harmonious and perfect." Before Hitsugaya could add in any comments, she continued, "And when that happens, he will finally regain all of his memories in his past life…and will no longer need to be haunted by lack of reiryoku and the nightmares that plague him at night, pestering him…engulfing him…voices…everywhere…telling him to search for his memories…"

Hitsugaya's eyes widened slightly but he hid his shock. He spoke, hiding the worry in his voice, "How do you know all of this anyway?"

"Sometimes, Toushirou…" the long-haired sister glanced away, eyes gluing themselves to the icy floor. "…empathy can be a very complicated ability."

With a reaction quicker than anyone else's, Kage jumped in front of Hitsugaya and her sisters, resorting to kicking the white-haired boy genius away before unsheathing her zanpakutou, the sheathe and sword band around her waist dissolving into black spirit particles that merged together with the blade of the sealed dagger, extending the length to a regular length of the standard katana blade. In awe of the unnamed release, Hitsugaya remained silent. Merenaito and Meian nodded to each other, staying in their positions behind Kage.

Diamond eyes glanced around warily, the katana trembling slightly in her grasp. A sharp gasp escaped her lips as she brought her zanpakutou up as a shield, shutting her eyes tight in the process.

"…Bloody…shit."

Snow had begun to engulf her.

**＜ブリーチ＞**

_The heavens above were dyed a deep ocean blue, and the surrounding air was cool and refreshing. Glossy black strands of hair flew around wildly yet smoothly, the contradicting actions of the flowing hair giving her the impression of being underwater. As she felt the currents around her getting faster and more out of control, her blurred vision made one thing clear: if she were truly in an underwater cavern of some sort, she had been in the worst of luck to enter one which was infested with underwater volcanoes._

…_No…wait…_

…_She wasn't underwater…_

_If she had been truly been underwater, then why in the name of hell were there shooting stars in the sky?_

'_Where…am I…?'_

"_You're in our world, of course."_

_With the voice coming from all directions, Merenaito couldn't tell exactly where the calm and serene tone was coming from. She had never heard such a soft, lonely voice speaking like as if she was right behind her and whispering the words in her ear, and Merenaito could feel with a tingle what the other was feeling: emptiness._

_Sorrow, loneliness, and all of the negative emotions crumpled together._

_The unbearable pounding to her head distracted her from her thoughts as she pressed her palms against her temples, trying to bring the headache under control. With eyes shut tight and the unfamiliarity of the air pressure overwhelming her, she couldn't deduce what was really happening to her. When the pain finally went away, she opened her eyes with a surge of courage and sucked in a gasp._

_She was no longer in the world of hills and landforms. Instead, she was in a world of blueness all around her where the air was fresh and pure. Closing her eyes once more, she took in a deep intake of the clean air and gave a peaceful sigh. She had never felt so…so contented before. It was like as if you had an elephant placed on your shoulders, and someone so kind and daring had helped you chase it back to the zoo. It was both refreshing and satisfying for her soul as she allowed herself to smile and open her eyes, her wish for the scene before her to never ever change coming true._

_A twinkle of light attracted her as she literally flew towards the source of the light, completely forgetting about the voice that had spoken to her earlier. Reaching out, she tapped the orb glowing with light, only to find her palm burnt beyond any form of healing. With a soft hiss, she withdrew her hand and brought it close to her heart, hiding the tears that were beginning to form in her eyes._

"_That's what happens when you touch something you're not familiar with," the voice spoke once more, except this time, there weren't any more migraines coming about. "You could've amputated your own hand by touching that star. Please be more careful the next time you come here, Merenaito."_

_The shoulder-length haired girl spun, having heard the voice call her name right behind her, but found nobody there. For a split second, she could've sworn…no, she was sure; there was definitely someone behind her and talking to her. She felt the other party's breath coming upon her neck. She was sure…but who could it be?!_

"_Who are you?"_

_It took a while before the voice spoke again, "You, who have yet to hear my name, are already curious about my existence. Your curiosity, which should have been curling within you before our encounter, will be satisfied soon enough."_

"_Who are you?" Merenaito asked, repeating her question. "And where are Kage and Meian?"_

"_Do not worry. They are safe in the hands of my sisters, and they shall come down to join you in a short moment," the soft, lonely voice assured, taking a pause as if to bow if Merenaito could actually see her. "I am pleased to meet you, Merenaito. And I know you are too. Now, if only you can see me…that would be what we both call bliss…the bliss that will finally fill the gauge of sorrow and emptiness…"_

_Merenaito's heart softened as she rubbed her burnt hand and sat down on her knees. "Then now I ask of you to show yourself to me. I wish to know you; I wish to see you; I wish to help you fill your heart and rid of its sadness." With a moment's hesitation, she added, "Please let me…whoever you are."_

"…_Then help, you shall…Merenaito."_

_The distant cries of two distinctive voices caused Merenaito to turn around. The diamond-eyed sister and the opal-orbed child appeared right next to her, blinking as if confused as to whatever mix of events that had happened to them earlier on. Merenaito could only guess that her situation could've had been similar to theirs._

"_Meru?" Kage and Meian chimed, rubbing the back of their necks._

"_You heard it too, I suppose?" Merenaito asked, only to receive a slight nod from each of her sisters. "She sounds very…lonely, doesn't she?"_

"_Lonely?" Kage scoffed, raising an eyebrow. "Are you kidding, Kana? Whoever spoke to me nearly __**killed **__me! I thought I was never going to ever see the light of day ever again…" she briefly explained with a slight shudder._

"_Well, for me, she sounded like me!" Meian exclaimed gleefully, jumping up and down. "Whenever I'm happy, she'll sound happy! And whenever I'm sad, like when I started thinking about you guys, she sounded sad too."_

"…_I think we're talking about three different people here, Kage," Merenaito stated emotionlessly, rubbing her hand continuously. "Who do you suppose they are?"_

"…_We are…" three different voices chimed as light began to engulf the room before dimming and revealing three different worlds at the same time. "…We are…you…"_

_The Kurayami _kyoudai _searched high and low for the sources of the three voices that spoke as if in a choir, but found no one. In an eerie coincidence, each of them had been separated to a different part of a different world. Wherever Merenaito was, it appeared to be a garden with blades of grass so green and fresh that felt smooth and wonderful to the touch, and a large pond in the middle of the garden, with the skies above blackened and not even a hint of a star there. The diamond-eyed middle child couldn't make out where she was; it was far too dark for her to see. She could barely even see the outline of her own fingers. Meian's was a mix of childishness and maturity; bright blue skies with a literally smiling sun that wore a pair of shades and a gorgeous rainbow hung in the skies, but below at the earth, it was dead and lifeless where not even a single blade of grass could be grown._

"_I am but a lonely lunar gone unnoticed by the human eye…"_

"_Who…?" Merenaito turned around, hoping to find someone there, but found no one._

"_I am but a reflection of the shadowy truth that no one else can see…"_

"_Where…?" Kage blinked, willing for her world to be lit so that she could find the missing piece of her life that was speaking to her in her mind._

"_I am but a life form having the need to disperse the sorrow within me…"_

"_Oh, but how…?" Meian, out of sympathy, tried to offer help to whoever had been speaking to her, only to find the barren land full of death and nothing else._

"_Can you help me achieve what I strive to achieve? Can you help me show myself that I am weak alone but strong when with you? Can you prove yourself worthy of knowing my name? If so, work together and become one in body, soul and mind, and speak of the name that has been flowing through along with your blood in your veins ever since you were born, and we shall purge forward…together. Together…always."_

"…_Always…" they repeated in a robotic tone._

_As if mesmerized by the choir that sung the song they had been deaf to but longing to hear, the Kurayamis closed their eyes and played around with their fingers before placing their palms to certain parts of their bodies. Pressing her palms on her temples, Merenaito sighed as she felt the emptiness fill her soul. Placing her palms against each other as if a freeze frame of a mid-clap, Kage tried hard not to make a sound as she felt power flowing through her veins. Over the area where her heart laid, Meian let a tear slide down her rosy cheek and wished for the dead lands to bloom with life again._

_When they opened their eyes, they finally found the missing pieces of the puzzle that they had been fumbling and troubling themselves for._

_With a smile that dawned upon each of their lips, tears had begun streaming down their cheeks._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"No, Toushirou! Stay away, and let me and Kana handle this! Toushirou!!" Said icy white-haired prodigy, however, refused to listen to whatever reason Meian had to keep him away from the pile of snow that Kage had been buried under. Teal eyes narrowed slightly at the sight, mind bringing back the quick memories of Kage protecting them from the snow attack while her sisters dragged him away just before the snow could reach them.

It had been all too quick for him to register, but it was still noticeable nonetheless. The avalanche had been a surprise for them, but it was Kage who discovered it first and she had acted quickly. Why hadn't he noticed it? Why hadn't he noticed the odd change in the reiatsu level in the room just as Kage unsheathed her zanpakutou? If he had noticed it first, then he wouldn't have had the need to bother the people around him…

He still strongly insisted on helping Kage, but Merenaito and Meian wouldn't let him. "Look, your main priority is to get Ichigo and Orihime, as well as yourself, out of here safely. We'll be able to hold Aizen and Koori off for you for a while, but if Ichimaru or Tousen or anyone else tries to stop you, do whatever you can to kick their sorry butts," Meian explained as-a-matter-of-factly.

"But, Kage…"

Sensing his concern, Merenaito decided to interrupt him. "Don't worry about her, Toushirou. We know Kage more than anyone else does." Taking a pause, she eyed the shifty pile of snow, and continued thereafter, "I can feel your worries about our welfare, but you shouldn't waste your thoughts about us. We're not exactly…worth being cared about." He had blinked; she knew, even though she had turned away, her back facing him. "…Just leave, Toushirou. And don't come back."

Darting his eyes back and forth from the sisters to the enemies, Hitsugaya held back a sigh and shunpo-ed out of the room reluctantly. Muttering 'let's go, Kurosaki' incoherently, the white-haired genius led the two orange-haired humans behind him towards the direction of the exit. He had turned around countless of times, and Ichigo thought he was making sure that there weren't any enemies following them even though it was his and Orihime's job to make sure.

Frankly speaking, Hitsugaya didn't know what to do from here onwards. Should they face anymore battles, they would make it out alive and the big-busted healer would instantly rid them of any injuries, but the problem was getting out of Hueco Mundo. No one in his current team had the ability to open up a garganta, and they had no means of any communication whatsoever to notify Urahara and get him to open the path back to the real world. There was no way of getting out of this place if a garganta couldn't be opened…

What was there to do?

"_Ara, _it's you, _juuban taichou-han_." Knowing that voice all too well, Hitsugaya stopped in his tracks and the other two followed suit. Standing in their paths were the faithful men of Aizen, donning their new choice of fashion. With a scowl, Hitsugaya glared at them, hand slowly traveling up to grab Hyourinmaru's hilt. In the next couple of seconds, the sharp clang of two blades could be heard, and dust and smoke began to gather. As they cleared, Ichigo and Orihime landed their sights upon the scene before them and gaped.

The white-haired ex-captain stood before them as he did just now, but they could see his shoulders moving up and down continuously, and heard his intakes of breath and pants. Blood was dripping onto the floor; blood that wasn't there before. And there, the extended blade of Ichimaru's zanpakutou, making a firm, steady position as its tip met Hyourinmaru's blade. The wielder of the icy sword had brought it up as a shield, protecting himself as well as the humans behind him with it, but he had not been fast enough; the blade had still managed to make a fine cut along his chest. If Hitsugaya had been any later, Ichigo reckoned, Shinsou might've had been able to pierce him right in the heart. He wouldn't have had survived, if that were to be the case.

"…Ichimaru…Gin."

The silver-haired traitor grinned. "Why, 'ello there again, Hitsugaya-han."

**＜ブリーチ＞**

"…_Oi."_

_Nudge._

"…_Oi. Wake up."_

"…"

_The white-haired figure sighed, rubbing the back of his neck in frustration. He craned his neck to the right, glancing at another figure standing behind him with knitted brows. His friend merely shrugged and casted him a baffled look. Hitsugaya Toushirou sighed once more, moving to the sleeping girl's side and bending down to reach her height position (finally, he's the one bending, not the other way round). He really didn't want to do this…_

"_Oi! Merenaito! Wake up!"_

_Heavy eyelids fluttered open, revealing the panic-stricken golden orbs. Said owner of glowing eyes turned to face the one who had just shouted in her ear before sending him something that was similar to a glare. "…Toushirou. What do you want?"_

"_Well, for one thing, you were sleeping in the library," the white-haired child retorted, scoffing a little. "Kusaka and I need to find some reading materials but you're blocking the shelf where the books we need are located…"_

_Merenaito arched an eyebrow, but it disappeared as soon as it came. The action gone unnoticed by the white-haired other, the black-haired girl gave a sigh and stood up from her sitting position before making her way over to her sisters who were still sound asleep. Hitsugaya and Kusaka shrugged as they bent down and grabbed the books that they needed._

"_Hey, Kage, Meian, wake up. We have to get back to-huh?" Merenaito paused, taking in the sight before her. Kage and Meian, check. Sound asleep, check. Hair is of normal colour, check. Uniform, check. But something on the check list was extra, and it could be counted as redundant, even…_

"…_Toushirou, Soujirou," she muttered, gaining attention from the two named. White and purple turned, with emerald and sapphire orbs staring at the back figure of the black-haired girl, awaiting her response. "Both of you are the top students in this school, aren't you." That wasn't a question at all, but they both nodded anyway. To their surprise, Merenaito knew that they had answered even though her eyes were not on them, "I have my suspicions about something, but it wouldn't hurt if you two could help me confirm them."_

"_Is something the matter, Merenaito?" Kusaka asked concernedly, getting up from his previous position. Hitsugaya followed suit soon after._

"…_Come here."_

_That was what they did._

_And when they landed their eyes upon the sight before them, shock had completely overwhelmed them._

**＜ブリーチ＞**

'…_Are you ready?'_

_It had taken a brief pause, but the answer came nonetheless. '…Yes.'_

_The soothing voice, which would remind one of the serene waves of the ocean, echoed, 'To fight alone is no easy feat for you; to fight together as one will prove to be more than just a challenge as well.'_

'_It will be…difficult, Meian,' an emotional tone continued, speaking every single word slowly as if having difficulty with her choice of words. 'Are you…sure?'_

'_Of course I am!' the sunny voice brightened, the owner smiling inwardly. 'Don't worry. You've been with me – us – for as long as we can remember. We can always count on you, and you can always count on us.'_

'_But…' Sniff. 'But…you will be…hurt. I don't…want you to be…hurt.'_

'_At ease, Tane,' a slightly sympathetic voice comforted. The sniffing seemed to have died down, but the presence of tears was clear and evident. The same voice sighed as if in defeat, but soon overlooked the matter and spoke, 'I agree with Tsuki, Mezura. You have not trained your zanjutsu recently; even Merenaito's skills are not up to standard. To ask of you to fight together…it is too much as of now.'_

'_I don't care about that,' Kage replied solemnly. 'All I know is that if we don't release you all at the same time, we will never be able to defeat Aizen.'_

'_Our full potential is brought out when we work together, as one mind. You, of everyone else, should know that very fact, at least,' continued Merenaito, narrowing her eyes slightly. 'We don't have much time.'_

_The three spirits of the blades casted each other dry yet concerned glances before they sighed simultaneously, eyes boring into their wielders' own. _

'_Very well,' they chimed._

In a blur of glowing gold, silver and sapphire orbs, the three respective owners of said eyes dashed away from _Yuki no Houou_'s attack before it came crumbling where they used to stand. The ice zombie held the hilt of his zanpakutou with both of his hands before swinging the blade swiftly, bringing about another phoenix manifestation of snow and ice that came towards the three sisters. Sensing the icily unbearable reiatsu plunging towards them, they split up and went in three different directions without the need of having had a word to be spoken. Meian dashed towards the huge pile of snow, distracting Koori so that her sisters would have the chance to plan their attack.

Merenaito and Kage met in their paths, stretching out their arms and curling their fingers around each other's. They turned to face the speedy Meian, giving a nod of their heads as if in approval of something they had sorted out. Their sister smiled and instantly shunpo-ed away from the phoenix just in the nick of time, joining up with her elder siblings and grabbed Kage's free hand. That was when Aizen had noticed the uncontrollably high reiatsu that suddenly showed up in the room like a surprise bomb attack from a terrorist. He smiled, obviously amused and interested to know more about the reiatsu's origins.

To their expectations, Koori had unleashed an attack of Yuki no Kirimomijoutai. The particles of snow and ice struck them like bullets but they paid no mind to the numbing pain, resuming their run together. As they reached half a round surrounding the white-haired child, they leapt into the cold, mist and released their hold on each other's hands, stretching their arms out instead. The reiryoku gathered at their palms, forming a big ball of blue energy. Koori immediately changed the direction at which his attacks were aiming at, but the combined reiryoku simply nullified Fuyu no Hana's technique. Words of the incantation ran at their mouths before the yelling of the hadou's name as the kidou spell struck its target.

Stepping out of the smoke was a slightly battered Koori, eyes still blank and lifeless, with the raven-haired Kurayamis shunpo-ing out of the mess together hand-in-hand. The atmosphere had gotten much thicker to the point whereby even Aizen himself found quite challenging to bear. The cycle of the heightening and dropping level of the reiatsu in the room was continuous and starting to take its toll on everyone who was present at the moment. He had already figured out, however, that the key to the fluctuation in reiatsu was the holding of hands amongst the triplets. The reason behind that was currently beyond his level of explanation, but he knew, somehow, that he _**will **_definitely unravel why…

Without saying a word, the close sisters nodded once more as the allowed their dominant hands to travel to the hilts of their zanpakutous. The action had gone noticed by Aizen's eye, but unnoticed by Koori as he had his back turned against them. The brown-haired sadist said nothing, letting the scene before him unfold by itself without any interruption. The white-haired celestial guardian, however, recovered quickly and had sent his targets an attack of Fuyu no Yuki. As the reiatsu died down drastically, the triplets broke apart from each other once more, making another narrow escape. Voices began to reverberate in their minds, and they had merely nodded back mentally.

"…It is time."

Although they had been at a distance from one another, Kage and Meian could hear Merenaito's command perfectly. With their approval by nodding their heads once, the raven-haired _kyoudai _leapt into the mists once more, forming the three points of a triangle. Their grips on their zanpakutous tightened as they stayed balanced in the air, keeping themselves there by using the spirit particles present. Dramatically, they slid the blades out of their sheathes as if they were playing the human's game of sticks, and just as the tip of the blades were about to leave the sheathes, their simultaneous fight had begun.

"_Yuuhei suru, Utsuse, Waratte ite!"_

The blades slowly turned midnight, glossy black like black ink filling up a gauge. The reiatsu had been so drastic and powerful that it nearly blew Koori off his feet; the strong winds that occurred to the imbalance in the pressure had been the cause of that. And as the blades became totally unsheathed, the names of their zanpakutous left their lips quickly.

"_Kuratsuki! Kurokage! Kanatane!"_

Merenaito's zanpakutou slowly took on the form of the released blade earlier, but the prongs had been much more evident, and the blade seemed to have extended in length with energy curling about it, showing the growth in power. Kage's, on the other hand, had absorbed the spirit particles which her sheath and sword band were made of, lengthening the blade to a regular katana size. An ominous aura surrounded the two known shadows, darkening the area on which she had been standing upon. Meian had completely ripped the back of her haori as she brought out her zanpakutou, leaving only the sleeves behind. They were insignificant as of now, she figured, and used the strengthened blade of her released zanpakutou to rip the rest of the haori apart. It had resembled Kurokage to some extent, however, but it still had its differences. The guard was one of them; the length was another.

With narrowed eyes, they ran their fingers down their released blades tenderly before curling their fingers around the cool blackened steel which began to draw blood from their palms. The choking reiatsu could've had sent any ordinary shinigami tumbling to his knees or falling limp or even dead. Unfortunately, neither of them was ordinary. A black ball of reiryoku distracted Koori for two fine lines to appear on his chest as he turned to look, and it was definitely a big mistake to look.

Midnight smoke escaped Kurokage's blade, while drops of fresh warm blood dripped onto the icy grounds from the tips of Kuratsuki's and Kanatane's blades. The wielders of the latter stared at their blood-stained blades intently before tilting to face the ice zombie. "You should be more careful, Koori," they chimed emotionlessly. "You know, we could've had pierced right through your lungs if not for the shred of humanity left within us."

From above, Kage merely smirked.

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Yuki no Houou – Snow of the Phoenix. Basically, it's just like Hyourinmaru's shikai, except that it's snow and takes on the shape of a phoenix. Koori can create as many as he wants.

Yuuhei suru – The release command of Kuratsuki. It means 'imprison'.

Utsuse – The release command of Kurokage. It means 'reflect'.

Waratte ite – The release command of Kanatane. It means 'please smile'.

Kuratsuki – Dark Moon; Merenaito's zanpakutou.

Kurokage – Black Shadow; Kage's zanpakutou.

Kanatane – Sad Seed; Meian's zanpakutou.

A/N: The real hiatus starts now, I'm afraid. -scratches head sheepishly-

What do you think of this chapter this time round? I rushed it through to keep it posted in time but it ended up late anyway…

Oh, and to add on to my treat of evil, there are no previews this time round. But! I will reveal something very juicy that will happen in the next chapter and the concluding chapter. I hope that's good enough because I don't wanna be too evil.

In the next chapter, you can expect the following to happen: Aizen invading Soul Society with Koori on a rampage and destroying nearly everything, but don't worry, there's a surprise at the end.

In the concluding chapter, you can expect the following to happen: the truth behind Koori's existence, his past, Hitsugaya's future, and of course…

The bankai of Fuyu no Hana.


End file.
